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Ecoslops, the first company to develop technology to produce recycled marine fuels from marine oil residues (also known as 'slops') has announced that it has signed a letter of intent (LOI) with offshore drilling and construction company Grup Servicii Petroliere (GSP) to conduct a feasibility study for the development of an oil residues processing plant in the Romanian port of Constantza, located on the Black Sea.

"The proven operational efficiency of our first industrial plant in the Port of Sinès, which recycles over 98% of slops collected, and the subsequent sale of marine fuel and light bitumen products, validates our business model, and have given us the confidence and springboard to ramp up our expansion projects. The Port of Constantza is ideally located, and GSP is the ideal partner to collaborate with on the development of this significant project, given their wealth of industrial experience and in-depth knowledge of the region," Vincent Favier, CEO of Ecoslops, said in a statement.

"Ecoslops has just signed a Letter of Intent with Grup Servicii Petroliere (GSP), a group well established in the Port of Constantza, to explore the feasibility of creating an oil residues recycling plant in this Romanian port on the Black Sea. Subject to a positive outcome of the feasibility study, Ecoslops and GSP will form a joint venture to implement the project, from building and managing the plant to selling its products," Ecoslops said.

The port of Constantza, located on the west coast of the Black Sea, is one of the main petroleum product distribution centres for Central and Eastern Europe, and is directly connected - via the Black Sea-Danube and Danube-Rhine waterways - to the Port of Rotterdam, where GSP has an office.

The Petromidia Refinery, owned by KazMunayGas and Rompetrol, with an annual capacity of around 5 million tonnes, is also located in the vicinity of the Constantza. Once operational, this new plant could collect maritime transport oil residues from Bulgarian, Turkish, Ukrainian, Russian and Georgian ports, Ecoslops says.

This latest development follows the implementation of industrial production at Ecoslops' plant in the Port of Sinès, Portugal, and the first sale of marine fuel products and light bitumen.

Ecoslops' objective, announced at the time of its IPO in February, was to bring three facilities on line by 2017.

"Ecoslops continues to develop its facilities in the Ivory Coast, and is also pursuing discussions with major operators to scope other opportunities in the Mediterranean and Northern Europe," the company added in its latest statement.