MABUX Digest: Top events on global bunker market. Week 13

The weekly digest was contributed by Marine Bunker Exchange (MABUX)
 
MABUX World Bunker Index (consists of a range of prices for 380 HSFO, VLSFO and MGO (Gasoil) in the main world hubs) continued firm downward trend in the period of Mar.23-27, however, the pace of decline slowed down:

380 HSFO 258.85 → 253.35 USD/MT (minus 5.50 USD)
VLSFO       330.00 → 316.00 USD/MT (minus 14.00 USD)
MGO         419.19 → 406.96 USD/MT (minus 12.23 USD)

• Drawing on a range of information sources, the BIMCO website provides a detailed run-down of the operative practicalities of individual ports, regions, states and countries. As the Coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) continues to spread across different parts of the world, BIMCO has announced that it is opening the port information section on its website in order to assist the industry.

• According to Rystad Energy,  the largest oil supply surplus the world has ever seen in a single quarter is about to hit the global market from April. The consultancy firm estimated this will create an imbalance of around 10 million barrels a day (b/d) – which will put a severe strain on the system because global storage infrastructure is already in trouble and will be unable to take more crude and products in just a few months.

• New statistics published by the Panama Canal Authority (AMP) showed a monthly fall in bunker volumes from January to February – a usual trend at the Canal for this period of the year, with the month-on-month decline in 2020 less pronounced than in recent years. Bunker volumes at the waterway were 436,066 metric tonnes in February, compared with 477,339 mt sold in January this year. The Pacific Side of the Canal accounted for the majority of the volume, totalling 348,757 mt in February. By comparison, 438,681 mt of marine fuel were sold in January 2019 and 367,875 mt in February last year.

• Curacao’s state-owned Refineria di Korsou (RdK) has taken control of an oil storage terminal on the island of Bonaire over a payment dispute with Petroleos de Venezuela SA (PDVSA). Curacao will seek Dutch court approvals to sell Bonaire Petroleum Corp (BOPEC), which is owned by PDVSA, and its 10-million barrel storage terminal if no payments are received.

• Scrubber advocacy coalition, Clean Shipping Alliance 2020 said, media reports concerning the narrowing of fuel prices should not be a deterrent to the wider take-up of marine exhaust gas cleaning systems (EGCS) as the technology remains the optimal, most effective means of meeting MARPOL Annex VI requirements. As per statement, the use of scrubbers also ‘avoids the uncertainty surrounding the quality and availability of very low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO).

• Singapore-based shipping company Unix Line PTE has been sentenced to pay a fine of $1.65 million, placed on probation for a period of four years, and ordered to implement a comprehensive Environmental Compliance Plan as a result of violating the US Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships.

• The Kairos LNG bunker vessel, operated by Nauticor, has refuelled Deme’s offshore installation vessel Orion for the second time at the Port of Rostock. The Orion is the fifth dual fuel vessel to join DEME’s fleet, following the three trailing suction hopper dredgers, Minerva, Scheldt River and Bonny River, and the cable laying ship, Living Stone.

• OxGas, a company owned by the Port of Oxelösund in Sweden, has commissioned MAN Energy Solutions to develop a multi-functional terminal for liquefied methane-based fuels at the port, which will include facilities for bunkering LNG and other methane-based fuels. The terminal will be designed to feed both LNG and green methane derived from biogas to SSAB ’s steel production facility in Oxelösund, and to re-distribute it via train and truck to other parts of Sweden.

• Wärtsilä Marine begins combustion trials using ammonia. The new tests are intended to help the technology company prepare for the use of ammonia as a fuel that can cut greenhouse gas emissions in the shipping and energy sectors.

• In the light of the coronavirus pandemic, Wallenius Wilhelmsen has announced it is suspending operations at several land-based processing centres, starting temporary layoffs for about 2,500 production workers in the US and Mexico. The temporary layoffs now started amount to a little more than half of the company's production workforce across the US and Mexico.

• Port restrictions prohibiting vessel boarding have been put in place at some locations, but for the most part, survey operations, including bunker quantity surveys, are continuing reasonably well. The Standard Club issued a circular on the situation in some UAE ports, which noted that at present no surveyors are being allowed to board vessels in Jebel Ali and Abu Dhabi ports.  Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah have not yet restricted surveyors' attendance.

• Standard Club is advising its members with ships fitted with scrubbers not to discharge their wash-water when in Turkish waters, as there are concerns that the environmental authorities in Turkey may fine the ship if the samples  collected from the overboard discharge line is suspected to be a pollutant.

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