Business

Brightoil faces $161 million claim from China Petroleum Pipeline Engineering

The litigation at a Zhoushan City court was among other developments highlighted in a quarterly update.

Published

7 years ago

November 4, 2019

Admin

Hong Kong-listed oil, shipping and bunkering firm Brightoil Petroleum (Holdings) Limited on Friday (1 November) issued an update on its resumption progress and business operations for the third quarter (Q3) of 2019 ended 30 September.

Among Q3 2019 developments were a USD 160.57 million litigation at the Intermediate People's Court of Zhoushan City and sharing of the company’s future business direction, on top of the updates.

Litigation of Brightoil Petroleum Storage (Zhoushan) Co., Ltd. and Shenzhen Brightoil Group Co., Ltd.

Brightoil Petroleum Storage (Zhoushan) Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of Brightoil, and Shenzhen Brightoil Group Co., Ltd., a guarantor of the former’s construction contracts, have been named as defendants in a lawsuit at the Intermediate People's Court of Zhoushan City, Zhejiang Province on 16 August 2019.

China Petroleum Pipeline Engineering Co., Ltd. and China Petroleum Pipeline Engineering Co., Ltd., Third Engineering Branch are the plaintiffs of the lawsuit over disputes of construction contracts.

The plaintiffs are claiming for outstanding construction costs, interests, loss and legal costs under the termination of certain constructions contracts related the building and construction of the Zhoushan Waidiao Island Brightoil Storage and Transportation Base for an aggregate sum of approximately RMB1,130 million (USD 160.57 million).

“The Company has entrusted a Chinese law firm to represent the Company on the litigation and has obtained positive legal advice, especially in response to the unreasonable compensation request,” stated Brightoil.

“The Company will take all necessary actions to protect the Company’s rights and interests. At the same time, the Company and the Plaintiffs had already conducted several rounds of discussion in order to strive to reach a settlement of the legal action as soon as possible.”

Upstream business – the primary focus of business in the future

Brightoil, meanwhile, said its Caofeidian oilfield is expected to complete the annual production target 40 days ahead of schedule. From January to September, the crude oil output was 8.24 million barrels, or 81.1% of the annual plan.

At the same time, it notes the construction costs for the Caofeidian oilfield to be approximately RMB 2,423 million, which is approximately RMB 500 million below the approved budget of RMB 2923 million.

In Q3 2019, the daily natural gas production of the Dina 1 and Tuzi gas field was 3.14 million cubic meters. The preparatory work for Tuzi gas field booster station and Dina 1-4 new well has begun, and the booster station is expected to be completed in October 2020.

“The management expects that the upstream business will be the primary focus of the Company’s development in the future,” it states.

Resumption progress on HKSE

Brightoil noted it has switched its independent forensic accountant, replacing KPMG Services Pte. Ltd. with RSM Corporate Advisory (Hong Kong) Limited on 27 August 2019 “primarily due to geographic concerns”.

It has also appointed RSM Consulting (Hong Kong) Limited as its internal control adviser on 21 October 2019 to review the internal control policies and procedures.

The company’s auditor, PricewaterhouseCoopers, has meanwhile commenced audit work on the Group’s outstanding financial results. It is expected that the preliminary results will be available in December 2019.

Yu Ming Investment Management Limited, Brightoil’s appointed financial adviser in Q3 2019, has started on formulating a plan to satisfy the Resumption Conditions and resume trading in the company’s shares on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

International Trading and Bunkering

Brightoil noted of “no significant amount of revenue” generated by its International Trading and Bunkering Unit in Q3 2019 due to credited being tightened by banks.

Marine Transportation

Out of the fifteen vessels in the fleet, fourteen of the arrested vessels have been sold by auction to date:

Sales by the High Court of Singapore

Ship’s Name	Sale Date	Price
Brightoil 319	2 October	SGD 6,155,000
Brightoil 326		SGD 5,955,000
Brightoil 329		SGD 6,182,000
Brightoil 639	9 October	SGD 10,005,000
Brightoil 666		SGD 10,225,800
Brightoil 688		SGD 3,933,000

Sales by the High Court of Hong Kong

Ship’s Name	Sale Date	Price
Brightoil Galaxy	21 October	USD 61,501,023.44
Brightoil League		USD 22,357,788.20
Brightoil Legend		USD 22,229,759.70
Brightoil Lucky		USD 22,363,371.30

The Brightoil Gem, the last remaining VLCC that is under arrest in China, is scheduled to be auctioned by the Haikou Maritime Court on 19-20 November 2019.

All proceeds from auction sales are expected to be used to settle the debts of Brightoil Singapore (S’pore) Pte. Ltd. BOPS and Brightoil after repayment of the vessel-related debts and liabilities, stated the company.

Potential debt restructuring and winding-up petitions

The Brightoil Petroleum (S’pore) Pte. Ltd. moratorium has now been extended until 30 January 2020; the next hearing date has not yet been fixed but is expected to take place in mid-January 2020.

On top of a settlement reached with Petco Trading Labuan Company Ltd and Brightoil on 7 August 2019, the company has also entered into settlement agreements with other key creditors and obtained commitment letters from several creditors showing support for its debt restructuring efforts.

Intended sale of Zhoushan Oil Storage and Terminal Facilities

Talks with “potential investors” for the intended sale of Brightoil’s assets at Zhoushan are still on-going in Q3 2019, notes Brightoil.

A chronologically organised list of articles concerning Brightoil’s potential debt reorganization is below:

Photo credit: Brightoil
Published: 4 November, 2019

Business

FLEX Commodities appoints Euwyn Tan as Senior Marine Fuels Trader in Singapore

Tan has experience across the marine fuels, bunkering and shipping markets, with a strong background in trading, procurement, commercial negotiations and developing relationships.

Published

11 hours ago

September 8, 2026

Admin

FLEX Commodities appoints Euwyn Tan as Senior Marine Fuels Trader in Singapore

Dubai-based bunker trading firm FLEX Commodities FZCO (FLEX) on Monday (7 September) announced the appointment of Euwyn Tan as its Senior Marine Fuels Trader based in Singapore.

Tan has experience across the marine fuels, bunkering and shipping markets, with a strong background in trading, procurement, commercial negotiations and developing relationships with shipowners and charterers across Asia and Europe.

Before FLEX, he was a Bunker Trading Manager in Propeller Fuels from 2023 to this month.

“Based in Singapore, Euwyn will play an important role in strengthening FLEX Commodities’ marine fuels trading capabilities and expanding our presence across the Asian market,” the company said in a social media post.

“We are delighted to have Euwyn on board and look forward to his contribution as we continue to grow our global trading business.”

Photo credit: FLEX Commodities
Published: 8 September, 2026

LNG Bunkering

Osaka Gas conducts Osaka Bay’s first STS LNG bunkering operation

Acting through Singapore-based marine fuel trading firm Integr8 Fuels, Osaka Gas supplied LNG bunker fuel to an LNG-fuelled PCTC operated by an overseas shipping company calling at the Port of Kobe.

Published

11 hours ago

September 8, 2026

Admin

Osaka Gas conducts Osaka Bay’s first STS LNG bunkering operation

Japanese energy company Osaka Gas on Friday (4 September) said it has successfully completed the first-ever ship-to-ship LNG bunkering operation in Osaka Bay, supplying LNG fuel to an LNG-fuelled PCTC.

The operation was conducted using SETO AZURE, an LNG bunkering vessel owned by Osaka Bay LNG Shipping Co Ltd, an affiliated company of Osaka Gas.

Acting through Integr8 Fuels Pte Ltd, a Singapore-based marine fuel trading company, Osaka Gas supplied LNG fuel to an LNG-fuelled PCTC operated by an overseas shipping company calling at the Port of Kobe.

Ship-to-ship bunkering will help ensure a stable supply of LNG fuel in the Osaka Bay area and support the development of the Port of Kobe as a Carbon Neutral Port.

In addition to ship-to-ship bunkering, Osaka Gas provides LNG fuel through truck-to-ship bunkering and port-to-ship bunkering. With capability covering all three major LNG bunkering methods, Osaka Gas provides flexible and reliable LNG fuel supply services to meet customers’ diverse needs.

The company said LNG bunkering infrastructure in Japan remains insufficient, highlighting the need to establish a stable fuel supply network to support the wider adoption of LNG-fuelled vessels.

Photo credit: Osaka Gas
Published: 8 September, 2026

Bunker Fuel

Bunker Holding, Dan-Bunkering to join USTC units at new Copenhagen hub

Employees from Bunker Holding, Dan-Bunkering, Global Risk Management, CM Biomass, Unit IT, Uni-Tankers, Selfinvest, and USTC will all be based together in a new shared USTC Hub.

Published

11 hours ago

September 8, 2026

Admin

Bunker Holding, Dan-Bunkering to join USTC companies at new Copenhagen hub

The owners and management of Danish-owned USTC have decided to consolidate the Group’s offices in the Greater Copenhagen area in a new shared USTC Hub, according to the Group on Monday (7 September).

Employees from Bunker Holding, Dan-Bunkering, Global Risk Management, CM Biomass, Unit IT, Uni-Tankers, Selfinvest, and USTC will all be based together in the new USTC Hub.

The lease will take effect on 1 December 2026, with employees and companies moving into the new hub in phases thereafter.

The chosen location is the brand-new Marmormolen development in Nordhavn, which will accommodate more than 150 workstations from across the Group’s companies under one roof.

The USTC Hub will provide better opportunities for the companies to connect and make the most of the possibilities that arise when independent businesses work in closer proximity. In that sense, the hub is a tangible expression of USTC’s approach: strong business acumen, a sense of cohesion and a keen eye for opportunities across the Group.

“In locations such as Houston and Singapore, we already have USTC Hubs where several of our companies are based together. This has created strong professional communities and valuable synergies across our organisation. We have therefore wanted to establish a similar concept in Copenhagen for some time. At the same time, the experience gained from our existing hubs will help us assess opportunities for additional hubs in other parts of the world where they make sound business sense,” said Nina Østergaard, co-owner and CEO of USTC.

The USTC Hub will span more than 3,000 square metres on the sixth floor of Marmormolen and will offer access to rooftop terraces as well as a range of shared facilities. This will provide an ideal setting for both formal and informal interactions across companies and teams.

According to Østergaard, however, the ambition is not to make the companies more alike.

“The hub is intended to be a platform for closer collaboration and knowledge sharing, but the aim is not to make our companies the same. Quite the opposite. Their differences are an important part of our strength. Each company has its own capabilities and direction. But by bringing people closer together, we create better opportunities to learn from each other, build bridges and make better use of the strengths that exist across our organisation,” said Østergaard.

The establishment of the USTC Hub will also support USTC’s ambitions for continued growth while creating a more attractive professional environment for employees.

“We are a Danish Group with offices around the world, and we have ambitions to continue developing. That makes it important for us to have a strong base in Copenhagen. It brings us closer to businesses, professional communities and some of the capabilities we will need in the future. At the same time, it gives us a stronger hand when it comes to attracting talented people,” said Østergaard.

“Our companies should, of course, retain their own identity. But it is equally important that there is something that connects us. To me, that includes strong business acumen, a sense of responsibility, keeping the distance from idea to action short, and staying close to the business.”

Photo credit: USTC
Published: 8 September, 2026