Oman Tank Terminal Company (OTTCO) plans to start operating a floating storage unit later this year to boost trade of crude oil futures on the Dubai Mercantile Exchange (DME), trade sources told Reuters on Tuesday.
The storage unit will increase monthly trade volumes on the DME would by 2mn barrels and help curb price volatility, they said.
OTTCO, which is majority owned by the Oman Oil Company, will lease storage space onboard a Very Large Crude Carrier, via a tender process to four companies for a year, the sources added.
The tender could be issued in June or July so that the storage space would be allocated before September when trade in November-loading cargoes starts. Each company will have space to store one cargo, or 500,000 barrels, they added.
OTTCO, a joint venture between OOC and Takamul Investment Company, declined to comment.
