Business

ENGINE: East of Suez Bunker Fuel Availability Outlook

VLSFO lead times have come down in Singapore, while the grade remains tight in Zhoushan, Japan and South Korea.

Published

5 years ago

November 17, 2021

Admin

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

17 November, 2021

VLSFO lead times have come down in Singapore, while the grade remains tight in Zhoushan, Japan and South Korea.

VLSFO supplies in Singapore remain constrained amid a pick-up in bunker demand and persistent loading delays at the Universal Terminal on Jurong Island. A Covid-19 outbreak capped manpower at the terminal last month. The queue of bunker barges lined up to load product grew longer and barges have been delayed from loading product since.

Singapore’s recommended lead time for VLSFO peaked at 13-14 days earlier this month, but has now come down to around 10 days as a sign of improved availability. 10 days is still the longest among key East of Suez bunkering ports, however.

LSMGO is slightly more readily available in Singapore with recommended lead times stretching up to seven days. HSFO380 continues to be difficult to procure at a short notice, with 10-12 days ahead generally required.

Singapore’s residual fuel oil inventories fell by 3% last week amid lower net imports, Enterprise Singapore data. The port’s fuel oil exports rose, while imports saw a smaller weekly percentage increase.

Fujairah is also facing tight availability, but with shorter lead times compared to Singapore. Low sulphur fuel grades require up to eight days of lead time in port, while the earliest supply date for HSFO380 is around nine days out.

The UAE port is facing a shortage of incoming cargo volumes, with prompter stems incurring higher premiums.

In Zhoushan, a supplier is expected to receive more VLSFO by 18 November to replenish stocks, while LSMGO is also tight in the Chinese port with the earliest supply dates rolling into December. HSFO380 is also difficult to procure for prompt dates in Zhoushan, as only two suppliers have volumes of the high sulphur grade to supply.

Suppliers in South Korea have been working to clear backlogs after bunkering resumed on 12 November. A bout of bad weather halted deliveries across South Korean ports for days last week.

VLSFO remains tight in South Korean ports, where only one refiner produces significant volumes at the moment. Other suppliers rely heavily on VLSFO imports to replenish their stocks.

Bunker fuels of all grades are in limited availability for prompt dates in Japan. The earliest delivery dates stretch to 26 November in Tokyo Bay. Some suppliers have run low on product amid competition with power plants for fuel oil.

Photo credit: ENGINE
Published: 17 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

10 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

10 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

10 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