Business

ENGINE: Americas Bunker Fuel Availability Outlook

Availability remains tight amid strong demand in Panama, while recommended lead times have dropped Zona Comun just ahead of potential weather disruptions.

Published

5 years ago

November 5, 2021

Admin

Resized Americas Bunker Fuel Availability Outlook image for Manifold Times

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

4 November, 2021

Availability remains tight amid strong demand in Panama, while recommended lead times have dropped Zona Comun just ahead of potential weather disruptions.

Supply continues to be tight in Panama, especially for HSFO380 but also other grades. Suppliers have been busy with demand picking up in recent weeks and delayed resupply cargoes.

Three suppliers in Balboa have limited availability of VLSFO and LSMGO to supply for prompt dates and can only deliver toward the end of the week or next week. Another supplier recommends lead times of up to 10 days.

Bunker suppliers can generally deliver VLSFO, HSFO380 and LSMGO grades on prompt dates in ports along the Gulf Coast and in offshore locations.

Certain suppliers have tight barging schedules for deliveries in offshore locations like the New Orleans Outer Anchorage (NOLA), as these locations take longer time to reach than locations closer to shore, and longer lead times are advised.

Strong winds and high swells could disrupt deliveries in the Galveston Offshore Lightering Area (GOLA) for a brief period on Thursday, while calmer weather is forecast for the rest of the week.

HSFO380 availability remains tight in the New York, with only certain suppliers able to accommodate prompt stems.

US fuel oil inventories were drawn last week amid higher supply to refineries, blenders and bulk terminals, the latest Energy Information Administration (EIA) figures show.

Stockpiles have gradually been declining in recent months. From an average peak of over 32 million bbls in May, stocks dropped below 29 million bbls in October. Higher demand from refineries, blenders and bulk terminals has drawn fuel oil out of storage tanks.

Widespread hurricane disruptions along the Gulf Coast in September dented production levels pulled fuel oil out of storage.

Gulf Coast refineries recovered fully towards the end of October and have been ramping up fuel oil runs to levels not seen since April. They produced twice as much in October as in September.

High bunker demand has kept suppliers busy at anchorages in Zona Comun and around Bahia Blanca lately, shipping agent Antares says. The earliest delivery dates for VLSFO and LSMGO stretched 4-6 days ahead in Zona Comun last week.

But availability of VLSFO and LSMGO has improved some this week, with recommended lead times coming down to 2-3 days, sources say. Strong winds are forecast to hit Zona Comun and could disrupt bunkering on Friday and Saturday morning.

Photo credit: ENGINE
Published: 5 November, 2021

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