Tranmere Oil Terminal is situated on the
River Mersey
The River Mersey () is in North West England. Its name derives from Old English and means "boundary river", possibly referring to its having been a border between the ancient kingdoms of Mercia and Northumbria. For centuries it has formed par ...
, south of
Birkenhead
Birkenhead (; cy, Penbedw) is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England; historically, it was part of Cheshire until 1974. The town is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the south bank of the River Mersey, opposite Liver ...
. It was opened on 8 June 1960 to handle vessels of up to 65,000 tons, at two berths (North and South). It is connected to the
Stanlow Oil Refinery by a pipeline. Part of the terminal occupies the site of a former ferry service to
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...
, with the extant pier considerably modified.
History
The terminal was built jointly by
Shell Oil, then the owner of Stanlow Oil Refinery, and the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board at a cost of £6 million.
It was built to replace
Eastham Oil Terminal which had only been inaugurated in 1954, but which did not have sufficient water depth to handle the 65,000 ton vessels that were operating by 1960.
By 2001, the terminal had two converted crude oil tanks which could handle .
These were used for the storage of
crude oil from the
Foinaven oilfield.
Current operations
All the crude oil feedstock for Stanlow Oil Refinery is delivered via the Tranmere terminal. The terminal is capable of handling vessels of up to 65,000 tonnes, and cargo sizes up to 170,000 tonnes on part laden
Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs).
Tranmere currently (2020) handles 140 ships every year, carrying a total of 9 million tonnes of crude oil.
The minimum water depth at Tranmere is 40 ft. (12.2 m), and there is a tidal range of 30 ft. (9.14 m).
The terminal is operated by the
Mersey Docks and Harbour Company
The Mersey Docks and Harbour Company (MDHC), formerly the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board (MDHB), owns and administers the dock facilities of the Port of Liverpool, on the River Mersey, England. These include the operation of the enclosed nort ...
.
See also
*
Oil terminals in the United Kingdom
*
UK oil pipeline network
References
Sources
*
External links
MultiMap
Buildings and structures in Birkenhead
Mersey docks
Petroleum infrastructure in the United Kingdom
Oil terminals
Peel Ports
{{petroleum-stub