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

3 years ago

April 5, 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:

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

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

13 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

13 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

13 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