Singapore’s JTC Corporation is eyeing the possibility of excavating vast underground caverns to store petrochemicals on Jurong Island.
The firm, the island-state’s biggest landlord for factories and industrial plants, will soon complete a geological survey to see if the area is suitable for tunnelling and building underground.
JTC Corporation looked at building underground after the defence ministry completed the construction of an underground ammunition facility in Mandai.
Ministry of Defence chief defence scientist Lui Pao Chuen said: "The general concern was that underground facilities would be difficult to build and expensive to construct and maintain. We’ve shown that isn’t the case."
He added: "The Jurong formation rocks are not as good as granite but they are adequate and competent for the construction of caverns."
The JTC Corporation confirmed that it is working with the Nanyang Technological University to carry out the two-stage geological study. Stage one involved drilling boreholes. Stage two, expected to start by June or July, will use this information to identify suitable locations for oil caverns.
