The PetroDar Operating Company Ltd is a consortium of oil exploration and production companies operating in Sudan

Sudan

Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...

 with its headquarters in Khartoum

Khartoum

Khartoum is the capital and largest city of Sudan and of Khartoum State. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile flowing north from Lake Victoria, and the Blue Nile flowing west from Ethiopia. The location where the two Niles meet is known as "al-Mogran"...

. The consortium was incorporated in the Virgin Islands on 31 October 2001. PetroDar is composed of the China National Petroleum Corporation

China National Petroleum Corporation

China National Petroleum Corporation is a state-owned fuel-producing corporation and the largest integrated oil and gas company in the People's Republic of China...

 (CNPC) (41% share), Petronas

Petronas

PETRONAS, short for Petroliam Nasional Berhad, is a Malaysian oil and gas company that was founded on August 17, 1974. Wholly owned by the Government of Malaysia, the corporation is vested with the entire oil and gas resources in Malaysia and is entrusted with the responsibility of developing and...

 of Malaysia (40%), Sudapet

Sudapet

The Sudan National Petroleum Corporation, also known as Sudapet, is a state-owned oil company based in Sudan. It was founded in 1997 and is 100% owned by the Ministry for Energy and Mining....

 of Sudan (8%), SINOPEC

Sinopec

China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation Limited , or Sinopec Limited , is a majority owned subsidiary of state owned company Sinopec Group. Sinopec Limited is listed in Hong Kong and also trades in Shanghai and New York ....

 of China (6%), and Al Thani Corporation of United Arab Emirates

United Arab Emirates

The United Arab Emirates, abbreviated as the UAE, or shortened to "the Emirates", is a state situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman, and Saudi Arabia, and sharing sea borders with Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran.The UAE is a...

 (5%).

PetroDar is currently (2008) engaged in oil exploration

Oil exploration

Hydrocarbon exploration is the search by petroleum geologists and geophysicists for hydrocarbon deposits beneath the Earth's surface, such as oil and natural gas...

 and production

Extraction of petroleum

The extraction of petroleum is the process by which usable petroleum is extracted and removed from the earth.-Locating the oil field:Geologists use seismic surveys to search for geological structures that may form oil reservoirs...

 in blocks 3 and 7, which are oil concession areas located in the Melut Basin

Melut Basin

The Melut Basin is a rift basin in South Sudan. It is situated in the states of Upper Nile and Jonglei, south of the capital Khartoum and east of the river Nile. The Basin contains several hydrocarbon accumulations, although oil exploration, as elsewhere in Sudan, has been hindered by conflict...

 in Southern Sudan. The company's production in this area reportedly accounted for almost half of Sudan's total crude oil output in late 2006.

The Melut oil export pipeline

PetroDar operates the Melut oil export pipeline

Pipeline transport

Pipeline transport is the transportation of goods through a pipe. Most commonly, liquids and gases are sent, but pneumatic tubes that transport solid capsules using compressed air are also used....

, also known as the PetroDar Pipeline. The pipeline connects the oil fields

Oil field

An oil field is a region with an abundance of oil wells extracting petroleum from below ground. Because the oil reservoirs typically extend over a large area, possibly several hundred kilometres across, full exploitation entails multiple wells scattered across the area...

 of the Melut Basin

Melut Basin

The Melut Basin is a rift basin in South Sudan. It is situated in the states of Upper Nile and Jonglei, south of the capital Khartoum and east of the river Nile. The Basin contains several hydrocarbon accumulations, although oil exploration, as elsewhere in Sudan, has been hindered by conflict...

 with the refinery and export terminal located at Port Sudan

Port Sudan

Port Sudan is the capital of Red Sea State, Sudan; it has 489,725 residents . Located on the Red Sea, it is the Republic of Sudan's main port city.-History:...

 on the Red Sea

Red Sea

The Red Sea is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez...

.

PetroDar pipeline starts from Palouge in the south of the Sudan and continues almost 1600km to the city of Portsudan. The pipeline took four years to complete with six pumping stations; Palouge, Algabaleen, Wad-shalaai, Alaylafon, Jebel Umm Ali and Musmar. All of the pumping stations are equipped with the latest in oil and gas technology to facilitate the crude oil temperature and flow until it reaches Portsudan.