Delivered premiums of very-low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO) bunkers in Singapore are falling after several months of strength due to rise in cargo inflow and weak spot demand.
4 August 2022
The additional cost to deliver VLSFO bunkers on top of the cargo price on 3 August was assessed at $49.56/t, down from an average of $95/t during July.
Premiums are falling as the market is expecting higher inflows of VLSFO cargoes from the west of Suez and Asia-Pacific this month, owing to margins having previously been at record levels.
High premiums and high outright prices have curtailed spot demand in recent weeks, with both buyers and sellers largely holding off.
Market participants are now returning to the spot market as crude prices are on the decline because of inflation and recession worries, and arbitrage inflows of VLSFO are picking up.
Argus on 3 August assessed VLSFO bunkers at $752.31/t, a sharp decline of $55.62/t compared to 2 August. Other key bunker grades such as high-sulphur fuel oil (HSFO) and low-sulphur marine gasoil (LSMGO) also fell, but comparatively less than VLSFO.
This incentivised buyers to come back to the market, with Argus reporting 16 spot deals in Singapore, up from a more typical 10 per day.
By Sammy Six
Related: Argus Media: Price volatility grips Singapore bunkers market
Related: Argus Media: Higher Singapore VLSFO bunker prices driving ships away
Photo credit and source: Argus Media
Published: 5 August, 2022
‘The MOU will foster innovation in smart and autonomous ship technologies, and support the use of green ammonia as a sustainable fuel to help decarbonise global shipping,’ says the Chief Executive of MPA.
PetroSeraya appoints YTL PowerSeraya veteran See Yoong Hwee to drive its fuel tank leasing operations; together with Rafe Liam as Commercial Manager, they will spearhead the company’s initiatives.
‘This biofuel bunker delivery represents a new chapter for Eng Hua as we are now moving with the times towards the era of decarbonisation,’ Mike Sin, Director at Eng Hua, tells bunkering publication Manifold Times.
MPA has also asked Glencore to improve its internal procedures to ensure that prompt action is taken in future when it becomes aware of, or reasonably suspects, any irregularity in fuel quality, it states.
Dynamic Asset Investments Limited and Goldsland Holdings Co Ltd helped Vermont UM Bunkering maintain a “Cash Float” of about SGD 100,000 to facilitate “buyback” bunker transactions at Singapore port.
Senior Cargo Officer gained SGD 48,800 worth of commission from “buyback” bunker transactions and illegally obtained SGD 410,712.257 by cheating Vermont, a Singapore court heard on Thursday (21 July).