Monjasa acquires two tankers for floating storage and bunker operations in West Africa

International bunkering firm Monjasa on Thursday (9 November) said it has acquired two tankers for floating storage and bunker operations in West Africa.

Monjasa recently took delivery of 68,589 dwt Monjasa Leader (formerly Cabo San Antonio) in Algeciras, Spain and 13,051 dwt Monjasa Refiner (formerly Saturn) in Bremerhaven, Germany respectively.

Both tankers were then dry docked for renewal surveys, name change and subsequent hull blasting and painting matching the Monjasa fleet design.

Group Shipping Director, Torben Maigaard Nielsen, said: “The Monjasa Leader becomes our largest fleet member and represents our single most important tanker acquisition ever.”

“Given the limited opportunities of storing fuel products ashore, our floating storage solution is the backbone of our West Africa marine fuels operations and allows for our supply tankers to frequently go alongside the vessel to load cargo. Providing maritime end-to-end logistics in West Africa is a challenging task, but we are confident that our two new vessels bring the efficiency and flexibility needed.”

Since 2018, the number of Monjasa-owned vessels has increased from five to 13 to ensure highly specialised operational standards, while at the same time lowering overall operating costs.

To realise the ambition of extended fleet ownership, the Monjasa Group has significantly extended its technical ship management capacity. This has been done through further development of the in-house company, Montec, which today comprises 20+ maritime specialists based in Dubai.

Later this month, Monjasa Leader replaces SKS Dokka (119,456-dwt), which has served Monjasa on time charter for the past three years.

At the same time, Monjasa has finalised the selling process of the 13,781-dwt oil and chemical tanker, Monjasa Runner, which will be repositioned from West Africa to the Mediterranean Sea for continued operations with her new owners.

Overall, the Middle East & Africa accounts for 27% of Monjasa’s total volume of 6.4 million tonnes of bunkers supplied in 2022, while Monjasa’s fleet comprises some 30 tankers and barges deployed worldwide.

Photo credit: Monjasa
Published: 10 November, 2023