KARACHI, May 12: Shell Pakistan Limited (SPL) on Wednesday became the first local oil marketing company to have marine oil spill control and recovery equipment. The company has jointly acquired Tier I/II oil spill control & recovery equipment in coordination with Pakistan Refinery Limited (PRL).

In this connection, an inauguration ceremony of the "training of oil industry personnel on marine oil spill recovery equipment" was held on the Shell Keamari Installation on Wednesday. Chairman and managing director of SPL, Farooq Rahmatullah inaugurated the session.

Describing the objectives of obtaining the equipment, Mr Ijaz A. Khan said, marine oil spill incidents in the recent past have gained the worldwide attention of the oil industry. SPL, he said, had acquired the oil spill contingency plan in contract with International Response Agencies and the oil spill control and recovery equipment.

Farooq Rahmatullah said that acquisition of this equipment is also significant as only port authorities including KPT, PQA and MSA possess such equipment, says a press release.

The equipment comprises containment booms (both harbour and Shoreline), recovery skimmers, land storage tanks, sorbents, etc. In Pakistan, Shell & PRL are the first industry members to have procured this equipment.

Also present on the occasion were Ijaz Ali Khan, general manager operations, SPL, Capt Anwar Shah, DG ports and shipping, Admiral Ahmed Hayat, chairman, KPT, Commodore Bakhtiar Mohsin, DG Maritime Security Agency, Zafar Haleem, managing director, PRL, Dr Shahid Haq, managing director, PARCO and Commodore Usman Omar, general manager, FOTCO.