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ENGINE: East of Suez Bunker Fuel Availability Outlook

VLSFO and HSFO availability improves in Singapore; LSMGO readily available across Sri Lankan ports; good demand in Fujairah.

Published

9 months ago

March 2, 2023

Admin

ENGINE East of Suez Bunker Fuel Availability Outlook

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

28 February, 2023

VLSFO and HSFO availability improves in Singapore
LSMGO readily available across Sri Lankan ports
Good demand in Fujairah

Singapore

Demand for bunkers has been average in Singapore so far this week. Prompt availability of VLSFO and HSFO grades remains tight, but lead times have improved slightly - from 7-9 days for both grades last week, to 5-7 days for VLSFO and 6-8 days for HSFO now.

LSMGO is still readily available in the port. Recommended lead times for the grade remain unchanged from the previous week’s 2-4 days.

Singapore’s residual fuel oil stocks have averaged 5% higher so far this month than in January and risen above their five-year average for the year, according to Enterprise Singapore. Stock levels have been helped by a 7% increase in net imports.

Meanwhile, the port’s middle distillate stocks have averaged 9% lower this month and continue to be far below their five-year average position.

East Asia

Availability of VLSFO in Zhoushan is tight for prompt dates as some suppliers are running low on stocks, but muted demand has kept a check on tightness, a source says. One supplier is expecting a VLSFO replenishment cargo to arrive in early March, which is likely to alleviate the tightness.

VLSFO and LSMGO stems require 3-5 days of lead time in the port - unchanged from the previous week. Availability has improved for HSFO in the Chinese bunkering hub, with lead times shortening from 5-7 days to 4-6 days over the past week.

Hong Kong has been witnessing weak demand so far this week, while availability across grades remain normal, a source says. Lead times for VLSFO and LSMGO are 5-6 days, up from around four days last week. Around 5-6 days ahead is advised for HSFO, which was subject to enquiry last week.

Strong wind gusts of 19-22 knots and waves of over a metre are forecast to hit Hong Kong between 2-3 March, which may disrupt bunkering operations.

A source says bad weather is forecast in the South Korean ports of Ulsan, Onsan, Daesan, Taean and Yeosu between 1-5 March, which might hit bunkering.

Lead times across all grades in southern and western South Korean ports vary widely, with the shortest at three days and the longest at around 12. This is almost same as last week’s 3-11 days for southern South Korean ports, but much longer than the 3-4 days needed previously in the country's western ports.

Strong wind gusts of 19-26 knots and swells of close to a metre are forecast to hit the Philippine port of Subic Bay from Tuesday until Friday, which might hamper bunkering operations.

South Asia

Availability of VLSFO and LSMGO remains good with lead times of 2-3 days across several Indian ports, including Mumbai and Kandla on the northwest coast, Cochin and Chennai on the southern coast, and Visakhapatnam on the southwestern coast.

Availability of grades are subject to enquiry in Tuticorin in the southeast coast and Haldia on the eastern coast of India.

However, the Indian ports of Kandla and Sikka are struggling with congestion and backlogs, which is only expected to ease by 3 March, a source says.

The Sri Lankan ports of Colombo and Trincomalee have good availability of LSMGO, with prompt dates available.

Middle East

Availability continues to be under pressure across grades in Fujairah, while demand has been good. Lead times of around nine days are recommended for VLSFO and LSMGO in the UAE port, and almost 12 days are needed for HSFO. But some suppliers can offer the grades for prompt dates, a source says. Lead times for all these grades have increased from last week’s seven days.

The Omani ports of Muscat, Salalah, Sohar and Duqm have LSMGO readily available.

By Tuhin Roy

Photo credit and source: ENGINE
Published: 2 March, 2023

Vessel Arrest

Malaysia: MMEA detains tanker for illegal anchoring in East Johor waters

Panama-registered vessel was operated by 17 crew members, aged between 21 to 58 years, from Pakistan, India and Bangladesh.

Published

5 hours ago

November 29, 2023

Admin

Malaysia: MMEA detains tanker for illegal anchoring in East Johor waters

The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) on Tuesday (28 November) said a Panama-registered tanker has been detained for illegally anchoring in East Johor waters on 27 November.

MMEA Tanjung Sedili Zone acting director Maritime Cmdr Mohd Najib Sam said the tanker was detained by a patrol boat at 11am at 15.8 nautical miles northeast of Tanjung Penawar.

The captain of the vessel failed to produce any documents that permission had been obtained to anchor in Malaysian waters.

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The vessel was operated by 17 crew members, aged between 21 to 58 years, from Pakistan, India and Bangladesh.

The case will be investigated under Section 491B(1)(L) of the Merchant Shipping Ordinance 1952 for anchoring without permission. If found guilty, individuals may be fined not exceeding MYR 100,000 or face an imprisonment term of not more than two years, or both.

Manifold Times previously reported law firm Oon & Bazul LLP sharing on steps shipowners should keep in mind before anchoring and conducting STS operations in Malaysian waters to avoid detention.

Photo credit: Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency
Published: 29 November, 2023

Alternative Fuels

DNV paper outlines bunkering of alternative marine fuels for boxships

Third edition of its paper series focuses on LNG, methanol and ammonia as alternative bunker fuel options for containerships; explores bunkering aspects for LNG and methanol.

Published

5 hours ago

November 29, 2023

Admin

DNV paper outlines bunkering of alternative marine fuels for boxships

Classification society DNV recently released the third edition of its paper series Alternative fuels for containerships, focused on LNG, methanol and ammonia as alternative bunker fuel options for containerships.

In its updated paper series, DNV examined the different alternative marine fuel options and provided an overview of the most important technical and commercial considerations for the containership sector.

It explored the bunkering technology for LNG, bunkering infrastructure for methanol, and availability and infrastructure of ammonia.

Building on the foundation laid in the second edition, which focused on the most important aspects of methanol as a fuel, this latest third edition delves deeper – exploring the technical intricacies and commercial considerations associated with adopting methanol as an alternative fuel for containerships.

Furthermore, it provides an overview of crucial aspects related to ammonia and discusses its potential as an alternative fuel for containerships.

Amongst others, the new edition of the paper looks at the following aspects:

Technical design considerations for methanol
Commercial implications of adopting methanol as an alternative fuel
Ammonia's potential as an alternative fuel
Availability, infrastructure and ship fuel technology for ammonia
Major updates based on the latest IMO GHG strategy decisions at the MEPC 80 meeting

Note: The third edition of DNV’s full paper titled Alternative Fuels for Containerships can be found here.

Photo credit: DNV
Published: 29 November, 2023

Alternative Fuels

EDF, LR and Arup launch tool scoring ports’ potential to produce and bunker electrofuels

Tool is also applied to three different port scenarios, including ports exploring fuel production and bunkering, ports exploring fuel exports, and ports exploring fuel imports and bunkering.

Published

5 hours ago

November 29, 2023

Admin

EDF, LR and Arup launch tool scoring ports’ potential to produce and bunker electrofuels

Lloyd’s Register (LR) Maritime Decarbonisation Hub and Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), in collaboration with Arup, on Tuesday (28 November) introduced the Sustainable First Movers Initiative Identification Tool, a system to help shipping stakeholders align investment decisions that support the maritime energy transition away from fossil fuels.

The tool, which is presented in a preliminary findings report – The Potential of Ports in Developing Sustainable First Movers Initiatives – scores a port’s potential to produce and bunker electrofuels while delivering local environmental and community benefits in alignment with the global temperature target of 1.5 degrees Celsius set by the Paris Agreement.

“Ports can play an important role in kickstarting shipping’s decarbonisation process even before global policies are established,” said Marie Cabbia Hubatova, Director, Global Shipping at Environmental Defense Fund.

“By considering the impact sustainable first mover initiatives can have on port-side communities, climate, environment and economies, resources can be better directed to locations where these initiatives will make the biggest difference.”

With close to two billion people living near coastal zones globally, the role of, and impacts on local port communities must be intentionally considered as the sector decarbonises globally. Ports can play a crucial role in ensuring shipping decarbonisation efforts are done in a way that has positive impacts on port communities.

The preliminary phase of the Sustainable First Movers Initiative Identification Tool analyses 108 ports in the Indo-Pacific region according to five criteria including land suitability, air quality, renewable energy surplus, economic resilience and ship traffic.

It is also applied to three different port scenarios, including ports exploring fuel production and bunkering, ports exploring fuel exports, and ports exploring fuel imports and bunkering. The combined criteria and scenario evaluation determines which ports have the greatest potential (high potential) for sustainable first mover initiatives to lead to significant emissions reductions and positive impacts in nearby communities, such as improved air quality and economic resilience.

“The transition to clean energy supply for shipping can be achieved only if stakeholders act together. Identifying potential port locations is the first step in this process,” said Dr Carlo Raucci, Consultant at Lloyd’s Register Maritime Decarbonisation Hub. “This approach sets the base for a regional sustainable transition that considers the impacts on port-side communities and the need to avoid regions in the Global South lagging behind.”

Regions in the Global South are fundamental in driving the decarbonisation of shipping. To make this transition effective, the rate at which different countries adopt and scale up electrofuels must be proportional to the difference in capital resources globally to avoid additional costs being passed on to local communities. Sustainable first mover initiatives can play an important role in making this happen by ensuring the sector’s decarbonisation is inclusive of all regions and by engaging all shipping stakeholders, including port-side communities.

“There’s a huge opportunity for early adopter shipping decarbonisation initiatives to unlock benefits for people and planet – shaping the way for a more equitable transition in the 2030s,” said Mark Button, Associate, Arup. “Our collective approach shows that taking a holistic view of shipping traffic, fuel production potential and port communities could help prioritise action at ports with the greatest near-term potential.”

The tool can be customised according to stakeholders’ needs and goals and is dependent on scenario desirability. The next phase of this work will include the selection and detailed assessment of 10 ports to help better understand local needs and maximise the value offered by sustainable first mover initiatives.

LR and EDF carried out a joint study on ammonia as shipping fuel, and LR and Arup have collaborated on The Resilience Shift study focused on fuel demand for early adopters in green corridors, ports, and energy systems, amongst many other projects.

Photo credit: Lloyd’s Register
Published: 29 November, 2023