The timeframe for the planned Maritime Hub project at Marsa depended largely on the outcome of a study commissioned by the preferred bidder, Ablecare Oilfield Services Holdings Limited, on the capital expenditure required for dredging, Investment Minister Chris Cardona said in Parliament.
He was answering a question by opposition MP Claudio Grech.
Negotiations would then continue on the footprint that the company, which is already operating at the site of the former Malta Shipbuilding, will require for its operation. The talks would not take more than a few weeks.
The footprint not taken up by Ablecare would be the subject of negotiations with other industries. The minister said Ablecare had started to process to set up an academy for the training of oil and gas workers.