Business

ENGINE: East of Suez Bunker Fuel Availability Outlook

VLSFO remains tight in Singapore; Zhoushan faces weather disruptions; good availability in several Indian ports.

Published

8 months ago

April 5, 2023

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:

4 April 2023

VLSFO remains tight in Singapore
Zhoushan faces weather disruptions
Good availability in several Indian ports

Singapore

Availability of VLSFO is still tight in Singapore, with recommended lead times of 9-11 days - almost same as last week. LSMGO and HSFO availability, meanwhile, has improved slightly over the same time period.

Lead times for LSMGO in Singapore have shortened to 3-6 days now, from 4-7 days previously. HSFO stems now need 6-9 days of lead time - down from 8-11 days.

Singapore’s residual fuel oil stocks have averaged 2% higher in March than in February, according to Enterprise Singapore. Stocks are up amid a 9% rise in net fuel oil imports. Both imports and exports are up this month.

Meanwhile, Singapore’s middle distillate stocks have surged 23% higher in March.

East Asia

Bunker deliveries have been suspended by rough weather in Zhoushan for the most part since Sunday, a source says.

The Chinese bunkering hub is currently experiencing strong wind gusts of 23-49 knots and swells of more than a metre. Adverse weather conditions are forecast to persist, and bunker operations are likely to resume fully on Thursday, when calmer weather is forecast.

Prompt availability of VLSFO remains tight in Zhoushan, with recommended lead times of 5-8 days - almost the same as last week. HSFO stems need around seven days of lead time, while LSMGO is readily available.

Availability of all bunker fuel grades has been getting tighter in Hong Kong as replenishment cargoes have been delayed, a source says. Lead times of 8-9 days are recommended across grades now – slightly up from around seven days last week.

Meanwhile, all grades have also been getting tighter in southern South Korean ports, with lead times varying widely between 3-12 days. Lead times are shorter in western South Korean ports at around four days across all grades – virtually unchanged from last week.

Rough weather is forecast intermittently between today and 9 April in the South Korean ports of Ulsan, Onsan, Daesan, Taean and Yeosu, which might hamper bunkering.

Adverse weather conditions are also predicted to hamper bunker operations in the Vietnamese port of Ho Chi Minh City on 8 April, and in the Kiwi port of Tauranga between 7-8 April.

South Asia

VLSFO and LSMGO availability remains good in India's Mumbai, Visakhapatnam and Kandla, with short lead times of 2-3 days.

Cochin and Chennai on the southern coast of India also have good availability, while VLSFO and LSMGO remain subject to enquiry in Tuticorin and Haldia. A supplier in Paradip is almost out of VLSFO.

However, the Indian port of Kandla is struggling with congestion and backlogs, which is only expected to ease by 7-8 April, and adverse weather conditions are forecast to hit the west coast port of Sikka and southwestern port of Visakhapatnam between 8-12 April and 12-13 April, respectively.

Middle East

Bunker schedules are under pressure for all three bunker fuel grades in Fujairah as several suppliers are working to clear backlogs caused by bad weather last week.

However, recommended lead times for VLSFO and LSMGO have shortened from 10-11 days last week to nine days now. HSFO requires almost 12 days – almost unchanged from last week. Some suppliers can offer prompt stems of all grades depending on the quantity, a source says.

Meanwhile, the UAE port of Khorfakkan has good availability across all grades, with recommended lead times of 5-7 days.

By Tuhin Roy

Photo credit and source: ENGINE
Published: 5 April, 2023

Methanol

China: Cosco Shipping and bp to explore collaboration in methanol bunker fuel

Duo signed a MoU in Shanghai to expand their scope of strategic cooperation into new areas including lubricant supply, methanol bunker fuel supply for bunkering and offshore wind supply chain.

Published

6 hours ago

December 11, 2023

Admin

China: Cosco Shipping and bp to explore collaboration into methanol bunker fuel

Cosco Shipping on Thursday (7 December) said it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with bp to expand their scope of strategic cooperation into new areas on 5 December in Shanghai.

“This includes Castrol Marine lubricants and hydrocarbons transportation, offshore equipment as well as exploring collaboration opportunities in areas such as methanol supply for bunkering and offshore wind supply chain,” Cosco said.

“Together, both parties will further capitalize on the business advantages of both parties, enhance synergies, and achieve complementary advantages and common development.”

William Lin, bp Group Executive Vice President, and Lin Ji, Executive Vice President of COSCO SHIPPING, witnessed the signing. Simon Yang, bp Group Senior Vice President and bp China President, and Chen Wei, Deputy Head of the Operations Division of COSCO SHIPPING, signed the document on behalf of the two parties.

Cosco said bp has been operating in China since the early 1970s and is one of the leading foreign-invested companies in China’s energy industry.

“bp and Cosco Shipping have a longstanding history of cooperation, including the transportation of energy products, offshore equipment manufacturing services, and the supply of marine fuels and lubricants,” it added.

Photo credit: Cosco Shipping
Published: 11 December, 2023

Methanol

Maersk to deploy first large methanol-powered vessel on Asia-Europe trade lane in 2024

Ship will enter service on the AE7 string connecting Asia and Europe, which includes port calls in Shanghai and Tanjung Pelepas in Malaysia, with Ningbo in China, being its first destination.

Published

6 hours ago

December 11, 2023

Admin

Maersk to deploy first large methanol-powered vessel on Asia-Europe trade lane in 2024

A.P. Moller - Maersk (Maersk) on Thursday (7 December) said it was about to launch the first of its 18 large methanol-enabled vessels currently on order.

On 9 February 2024, the ship will enter service on the AE7 string connecting Asia and Europe, which includes port calls in Shanghai, Tanjung Pelepas, Colombo and Hamburg, with Ningbo, China, being its first destination.

“The container vessel built by Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) in South Korea has a nominal capacity of 16,000 containers (TEU) and is equipped with a dual-fuel engine enabling operations on methanol as well as biodiesel and conventional bunker fuel,” the firm said.

Maersk added it has secured sufficient green methanol to cover the vessel’s maiden voyage and continues to work diligently on 2024-25 sourcing solutions for its methanol-enabled vessel fleet.

“Deploying the first of our large methanol-enabled vessels on one of the world’s largest trade lanes, Asia - Europe, is a landmark in our journey towards our Net-Zero target. With the vessel’s capacity of 16,000 containers, this will make a significant impact in our customers’ efforts to decarbonise their supply chains, and we are looking forward to introducing more methanol-enabled vessels on this and other trades during 2024,” Karsten Kildahl Chief Commercial Officer at Maersk, said.

Ahead of its deployment, the vessel will be named at the shipyard in end January 2024. The following two sister vessels will be deployed in the first half of 2024 with naming events taking place in Yokohama, Japan, and Los Angeles, USA. Maersk said it was expected to take delivery of four additional sister vessels in the second half of 2024.

At the time of deployment of the first large vessel, it will be the only second container vessel in the world that can sail on green methanol, the first being the feeder vessel Laura Maersk which entered service in September this year.

Overview of Maersk vessels on order

Maersk has 24 container vessels on order
All vessels currently on order will be equipped with dual-fuel engines and will be able to operate on green methanol
12 of the vessels on order have a capacity of 16,000 TEU (Twenty-foot Equivalent Unit containers)
6 of the vessels on order have a capacity of 17,000 TEU
6 of the vessels on order have a capacity of 9,000 TEU
Since 2021, Maersk has had a policy of only ordering new vessels able to operate on green fuels

About Maersk’s AE7 service string

The AE7 string connects Asia and Europe through the Suez Canal
The AE7 string has the following port calls: Ningbo, Shanghai, Nansha, Yantian (all China), Tanjung Pelepas (Malaysia), Colombo (Sri Lanka), Port Tangiers (Morocco), Felixstowe (UK), Hamburg (Germany), Antwerp (Belgium), London Gateway (UK), Le Havre (France), Port Tangiers, Jeddah (Saudi Arabia), Abu Dhabi (UAE) and Jebel Ali (UAE)

Photo credit: A.P. Moller - Maersk
Published: 11 December, 2023

VLSFO

ENGINE: Petrobras’ new bunker price mechanism adds to Brazil market shake-up

With a new pricing mechanism now in place since 1 November, Petrobras bunker prices can change anytime throughout the day and final prices will depend on enquiries, a source says.

Published

6 hours ago

December 11, 2023

Admin

Since Brazilian petroleum firm and bunker supplier Petrobras shifted from posted bunker prices to indicative prices, Santos’ VLSFO discounts to Brazilian and foreign ports have narrowed.

Petrobras started issuing indicative bunker prices for Brazilian ports on 1 November, shifting from its usual pricing mechanism of posted prices. These posted prices were mostly fixed in nature, and did not tend to change despite movements in underlying crude values.

With a new pricing mechanism now in place, Petrobras bunker prices can change anytime throughout the day and final prices will depend on enquiries, a source says. The new pricing has been reflected in Brazilian bunker price dynamics.

Santos’ VLSFO price discount to Zona Comun’s VLSFO has come down from peak levels of $50/mt in September to around $35/mt in October and November and has further slid to just $4/mt.

VLSFO prices have also changed rapidly between Brazilian ports in recent weeks. Rio Grande’s VLSFO premium over Santos momentarily shrunk from nearly $40/mt in November to just $8/mt earlier this week, but then widened back to $42/mt.

Some argue that Petrobras decided to change the pricing mechanism because of the rise in competition in the Brazilian market. In recent months, several suppliers such as Ipiranga and Bunker One have expanded their Brazilian bunker operations, offering new grades and entering new ports in Brazil. Raizen also started VLSFO supply in the port of Itaqui and São Luiz in July this year.

Another source says that competition is mostly between Brazilian ports - as opposed to with foreign ports. Ships calling in Brazil will be able to pick and choose bunker-only ports with the best offers. Meanwhile, those vessels calling in Argentina will ideally pick bunkers from Zona Comun rather than Brazilian ports, the source adds.

By Nithin Chandran

Source: ENGINE
Photo credit: Gabriel Martins on Unsplash
Published: 11 December, 2023