In December 2016, Odebrecht completed the construction of two major infrastructure projects in Ecuador: the La Esperanza-Pacific Refinery aqueduct and the Pascuales-Cuenca multi-product pipeline.
In case of the aqueduct,a 6000 m3/hour pumping station located 15 km from the city of Manta, in the province of Manabí, captures raw water from the La Esperanza dam and conveys it through a 94-km-long, 48”-diametre pipeline to El Aromo, the intended site for the future Pacific Refinery.
Until construction on the Pacific Refinery begins, all of the raw water is being delivered to the nearby cities of Manta, Montecristi and Jaramijó. The refinery’s future operations will use approximately 4000 m3/hour,and the remaining 2000 m3/hour will continue to be allocated to these three urban areas.
The province of Manabí has historically faced serious water shortage problems. These were made worse by the April 2016 earthquake that registered 7.8 on the Richter scale and caused considerable damage in Manabí and Esmeraldas. In this context, the new aqueduct’s operations can currently guarantee raw water supply for 330,000 inhabitants in Manta, Montecristi and Jaramijó, all of which are now completing construction of their respective water treatment plants. By the end of March, the aqueduct had already transported 2.9 million cubic meters of water to the three cities.
Odebrecht also completed the Pascuales-Cuencamulti-product pipeline in December. The pipeline will transport fuel in an economical, sustainable and safe way through seven provinces in Ecuador. The system is composed of two pipeline sections with a total length of approximately 215 km, five pumping stations and two terminals.
Section 1 includes a 103-km,10”-diameter pipeline, the Pascuales and El Chorrillo pumping stations and the La Troncal terminal. It has been operating since May 2016. Section 2 includes a 112-km, 8”-diameter pipeline, the La Delicia, Ducur and Charcay pumping stations, and a storage and dispatch terminal in the city of Cuenca. It has been operating since December 2016.
By the end of March 2017, the Pascuales-Cuenca multi-product pipeline had dispatched a total of almost five million barrels of gasoline with two octane ratings(“Extra” and “Super”), diesel oil and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) to the terminals in La Troncal and Cuenca. These terminals, located in the provinces of Cañar and Azuay, respectively, have supplied more than 900 tanker trucks of fuels in their respective service regions.
During construction, both projects generated more than 4000 direct jobs, 98% of which were Ecuadorian, emphasising the use of local labour.
In 2017, Odebrecht is celebrating 30 years of operations in Ecuador.