Completion of Phase I Fuel Oil Facility, improves USFK warfighter capabilities

Far East District
Published April 23, 2020
Completion of Phase I Fuel Oil Facility, improves USFK warfighter capabilities

Col. Lee Woo Sig (left), Ministry of National Defense U.S. Forces Relocation Office DCA, and Col. Garrett Cottrell (right), Deputy Commanding Officer - Transformation, United States Army Corps of Engineers Far East District, sign the Acceptance Release Memorandum for the OS030 Phase I Fuel Oil Facility, Camp Humphreys, South Korea, Apr. 16.

CAMP HUMPHREYS, South Korea – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Far East District (FED) has demonstrated resolve and dedication to completing the mission during COVID19, as the district has held three Acceptance Release Letter (ARL) ceremonies during the pandemic.

The latest project to be completed was the OS030 Phase I Fuel Oil Facility located at Camp Humphreys, South Korea. The OS030 Phase I, was a $29million project which will provide railcar offload and fuel truck upload fuel capabilities, limited JP8 fuel storage, retail MOGAS, and diesel storage distribution.

“The OS030 is the first phase of getting the completed system turned over to the government,” said Eman Sundquist, a district project manager.

This is the first phase of three separate but inter-connected projects with an overall cost of $56 million, and will provide U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) and Eighth Army with the capability to store five million gallons of fuel along with enhanced offload and upload fueling capabilities.

“As Camp Humphreys has grown and the warfighters are relocated and placed on different sides of the base there was a need to have a capability to support them during armistice and contingency,” said Sundquist. “This new fuel site will allow the warfighter enhanced capability to support Humphreys and the KTO [Korea Task Order].  The current fuel is stored and dispensed near the south end of the airfield here on Humphreys in the legacy Bulk Fuel Storage. This facility is located on non-SOFA [Status of Forces Agreement] land and is under FASC Task 3248.   This new system is a modern facility and belongs to the Army who has requested for DLA [Defense Logistics Agency] Energy to Capitalize and Optimize the site.”

According to Sundquist, this phase of the project took a little over six years to complete. Sundquist also stated that this portion of the operating system provides Humphreys with storage, tank truck, and retail and RTC capability to support the warfighter.

This project overcame a few challenges through the teamwork and a combined effort of all entities involved. Eman stated that a lot of coordination took place to reach a combined schedule for the three projects since each project is dependent on the other.

“The bulk fuel facility is comprised of the following contracts: OS030, OS031 and OS030 Phase 2. OS030 is an YRP/LH [Yongsan Relocation Program/ Korea Land and Housing Corporation] project whereas OS031 is a ROK [Republic of Korea] In Kind Project,” said Sundquist. “In order to identify the area of responsibilities of the fuel delivered, an agreement had to be reached between five Project Managers. The signed agreement took over 1.5 years to be accomplished. A lot of coordination and agreements took place between OS030 and OS031 contractors to synchronize the construction activities that connects both projects. Examples include, connecting OS030 generators to OS031 to provide backup power to OS031; connecting the Emergency Fuel Shut-off between OS030 and OS031 and connecting the supply and return fuel pipes between OS030 tanks (two and OS031 tanks.”

Sundquist wanted to recognize all the help and support provided by Eighth Army G4 and DLA-Korea team members.

“DLA and G4 were present during all of the fuel responsibility agreement meetings sharing important information and suggestions that were very instrumental in reaching the agreement,” said Sundquist. “They were present daily during OS030 fuel delivery for commissioning to coordinate the needed equipment and Army vehicles to test the system.”

This project is a significant addition to support the warfighter mission within the Republic of Korea. The OS030 Phase I Fuel Oil Facility is the first step in securing bulk fueling capability for USFK.