As part of his official visit to Bizerte, the Secretary of State responsible for the Energy Transition, Wael Chouchane, carried out, Thursday, May 22, a series of activities aimed at strengthening the safety and energy development devices in the region.
The visit began with a working meeting with the governor of Bizerte, Salem Ben Yacoub. The two officials discussed the main development projects to be implemented in the governorate, with particular attention paid to concerns related to the energy sector and companies operating in this area.
An upper point of this visit: an operation to simulate a spill of petroleum products at sea was organized at the Port de Bizerte petroleum quay, operated by the Tunisian company of refining industries (STIR).
The event took place in the presence of the CEO of the STIR, Afif Mabrouki, senior executives of the ministry, managers of organizations under guardianship as well as representatives of local and regional authorities.
This simulation, coordinated with the services of the port of Bizerte-Menzel Bourguiba, aimed to test the efficiency of the port system in the event of an accident, in particular the technical systems for response to marine pollution. The exercise made it possible to simulate a realistic scenario of oil leak at sea.
The event was organized by the STIR in partnership with the Association of the Mediterranean Grouping of the Petroleum Industry (MOIG), specializing in the strengthening of the capacity for response to spills in the Mediterranean, and the CEDRE Center, reference in terms of documentation and resources on accidental water pollution.
On this occasion, Wael Chouchane stressed the importance of this type of operations, which are part of the ministry’s efforts to raise security and preparation standards for emergency situations. He said that “the constant preparation and coordination between the different stakeholders are a cornerstone of the protection of the facilities and the preservation of the environment”.
