Business

ENGINE: Americas Bunker Fuel Availability Outlook

LSMGO limited on US East Coast after relentless stock draw; mixed HSFO availability between Houston suppliers; VLSFO runs dry in Rio de Janeiro.

Published

4 years ago

April 29, 2022

Admin

Resized Americas Bunker Fuel Availability Outlook image for Manifold Times

The following article regarding bunker fuel availability in the Americas region has been provided by online marine fuel procurement platform ENGINE for post on Singapore bunkering publication Manifold Times:

28 April, 2022

LSMGO limited on US East Coast after relentless stock draw
Mixed HSFO availability between Houston suppliers
VLSFO runs dry in Rio de Janeiro

New York’s LSMGO price has surged to wider premiums over other key regional ports this week amid limited volumes to supply. Several suppliers have no availability for prompt delivery dates. At least one has sold out and is unsure when it will get resupplied.

Distillate stocks in the US Central Atlantic region, which covers New York and New Jersey, have been drawn to 10.74 million bbls, or less than half of their levels in December, according to Energy Information Administration (EIA) data.

Fuel oil stock builds on the US Gulf Coast and East Coast have helped raise total US inventories in April.

Rising imports have supported the build. Imports are up by 55% from March. Russia has been replaced by Mexico in April as the US’ biggest fuel oil import source, Vortexa cargo tracking data shows. Russia was still the second biggest source in April, but imports dwindled towards the end of the month as the full effects of the US import ban on Russian oil kicked in.

A two-tiered market has taken shape in the Houston area, where one supplier has been pricing VLSFO consistently below others. Availability of VLSFO and LSMGO is said to be normal, while HSFO380 is tighter with only two suppliers currently offering the grade in Houston.

HSFO380 availability has tightened both in the Houston area and in offshore locations like the Galveston Offshore Lightering Area (GOLA). HSFO380 has been priced in a wide range in Houston amid volatile underlying crude values and a quickly changing availabilities among suppliers.

Suppliers in Los Angeles and Long Beach also recommend a good number of lead time days. One supplier can deliver VLSFO and LSMGO with 11 days of lead time, another with shorter notice.

LSMGO is tight with suppliers in Trinidad, while readily available in Colombia’s Cartagena where a supplier can deliver with two days of lead time.

Prompt supply of all grades is tight in Balboa, where suppliers’ earliest delivery dates mostly range between 8-12 days out. Two suppliers might be able to accommodate deliveries with 6-7 days of lead time, but congestion has been cited as a reason for tightening availability.

Rough weather in Zona Comun over the weekend and for a period during this week pushed back delivery schedules and created a bunker backlog. Prompt availability is tight as suppliers work through these backlogs. VLSFO and LSMGO availability is said to be normal at the Argentinian anchorage, with prompt deliveries possible when weather conditions allow. Calm weather is forecast for the coming week.

There is no VLSFO available in Brazil’s Rio de Janeiro, or any estimated time for when it will be back on offer. Supply of the grade is also tight in Rio Grande and Paranagua, but stems can be offered with around seven days of lead time in these ports.

Photo credit and source: ENGINE
Published: 29 April, 2022

Legal

Singapore withdraws remaining 127 charges against Hin Leong founder OK Lim

Lim Oon Kuin, also known as OK Lim, was issued a stern warning and a district court granted him a discharge amounting to an acquittal for these charges on 17 July.

Published

15 hours ago

July 21, 2026

Admin

Founder of collapsed oil trader Hin Leong Trading, Lim Oon Kuin, also known as OK Lim, has had the remaining 127 charges against him withdrawn, according to The Straits Times on Monday (20 July).

OK Lim was issued a stern warning and a district court granted him a discharge amounting to an acquittal for these charges, including those for cheating, on 17 July. The discharge means Lim cannot be prosecuted again for the same offences.

Lim, 84, is currently serving a 13½-year prison sentence after the High Court reduced his original 17½-year jail term in March 2026. He was convicted in 2024 on two cheating charges and one count of abetting forgery in a case prosecutors described as one of Singapore’s most serious trade finance frauds.

Lim was convicted in May 2024 of two charges of cheating the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) and one count of abetting forgery that proceeded to trial out of a total of 130 criminal charges.

He was first charged in court on 14 August 2020, and was subsequently handed further charges in court on 25 September 2020, 30 April 2021 and 24 June 2021 for his role in perpetuating fraud on various financial institutions.

A total of 130 charges were eventually brought against him for cheating and forgery-related offences.

Photo credit: Sora Shimazaki
Published: 21 July, 2026

Winding up

Singapore: Coastal Logistics Pte Ltd to be wound up voluntarily

Coastal Logistics was reportedly affiliated with troubled Singapore bunker player Coastal Oil (Singapore) Pte Ltd.

Published

15 hours ago

July 21, 2026

Admin

Several resolutions for Coastal Logistics Pte Ltd were made during an extraordinary general meeting held on 14 July, according to a notice in the Government Gazette on Friday (4 July).

The following resolutions were duly passed during the meeting:

As Special Resolution

That it has been proved to the satisfaction of the meeting that the Company cannot by reason of its liabilities continue its business and accordingly the Company be wound up voluntarily pursuant to Section 160(1)(b) of the Insolvency, Restructuring and Dissolution Act 2018 (No. 40 of 2018);

As Ordinary Resolutions

that Mr. Wong Pheng Cheong Martin and Ms. Koay May Yee, both care of FTI Consulting (Singapore) Pte Ltd, One Raffles Quay, #27-10 South Tower, Singapore 048583 be appointed as the joint and several Liquidators of the Company for the purpose of such winding up; and
that the Liquidators be at liberty to open, maintain and operate any bank account(s) or account(s) for monies received by them as Liquidators with such bank(s) as they deem fit; and
that a Committee of Inspection will not be formed.

Manifold Times previously reported Nicholas James Gronow, director of Heng Tong Fuels & Shipping and Coastal Logistics, filed statutory declarations for both companies stating the firms cannot continue their businesses due to liabilities.

Both companies were reportedly affiliated with troubled Singapore bunker player Coastal Oil (Singapore) Pte Ltd.

In 2019, several vessels owned by both firms entered the sale & purchase (S&P) market in Singapore.

Photo credit: Drew Beamer
Published: 21 July, 2026

LNG Bunkering

PIL’s LNG dual-fuel boxship “Kota Elok” arrives in Singapore on maiden call

As the first of 13 new 13,000 TEU vessels joining its fleet, Kota Elok is equipped to operate on LNG and low-sulphur fuel oil that helps reduce our greenhouse gas emissions.

Published

15 hours ago

July 21, 2026

Admin

PIL's LNG dual-fuel boxship “Kota Elok” arrives in Singapore on maiden call

Singapore-based Pacific International Lines Pte Ltd on Monday (20 July) said its first 13,000 TEU LNG dual-fuel container vessel, Kota Elok, recently made her maiden call to Singapore on 15 July.

As the first of 13 new 13,000 TEU vessels joining its fleet, Kota Elok is equipped to operate on liquefied natural gas (LNG) and low-sulphur fuel oil that helps reduce our greenhouse gas emissions.

The vessel also incorporated energy-saving features and digital technologies to reduce fuel consumption and enhance operational performance, as well as a bow windshield to improve aerodynamics, contributing to improved fuel efficiency and lower emissions over the course of long-haul voyages.

“Following Singapore, Kota Elok will continue her voyage on our East Coast Service 1 (ES1) route to South America, calling at ports in Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina before returning to Asia,” the company said in a social media post.

Kota Elok also became PIL’s first vessel to receive Lloyd’s Register certification for compliance with the IACS UR E26 and UR E27 cyber security requirements.

Developed by the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS), UR E26 and UR E27 are mandatory cyber resilience requirements for newbuild vessels contracted from 1 July 2024.

Photo credit: Pacific International Lines
Published: 21 July, 2026