• 2024 October 5 15:24

    Engine: Europe & Africa market update 4 Oct 2024

    Bunker benchmarks in European and African ports have tracked Brent’s upward movement, and Rotterdam’s Hi5 spread has narrowed further, Engine reported. Changes on the day to 09.00 GMT today:

    VLSFO prices up in Gibraltar ($24/mt), Rotterdam ($19/mt) and Durban ($18/mt)
    LSMGO prices up in Gibraltar ($37/mt), Rotterdam ($31/mt) and Durban ($12/mt)
    HSFO prices up in Rotterdam ($49/mt) and Gibraltar ($35/mt)

    Rotterdam’s HSFO price has increased by a steep $49/mt in the past day. A higher-priced prompt HSFO stem fixed at $495/mt for 150-500 mt in the past day has spurred the upward movement in the benchmark. As a result, Rotterdam’s HSFO discount to Gibraltar's has narrowed by $14/mt to $22/mt now.

    All grades are tight in Rotterdam, but prompt HSFO supply is most constrained amid bunker barge loading delays at terminals, a trader told ENGINE. The port’s Hi5 spread has also narrowed sharply from $63/mt yesterday to $33/mt now.

    In contrast, bunker fuel availability is good for prompt delivery in Gibraltar. But bunkering may be hampered in Gibraltar today due to wind gusts of up to 20 knots forecast in the port area. Three vessels are waiting for bunkers in Gibraltar today, a source said.

    Availability of VLSFO and LSMGO is good in the Greek port of Piraeus, the trader said. Suppliers are able to offer prompt delivery dates for the two grades in the port. Prompt HSFO supply is subject to enquiry there, the trader added. Calm weather is forecast in Piraeus today and over the weekend, making it conducive to bunker there, a source said.

    Brent
    The front-month ICE Brent contract has moved $3.88/bbl higher on the day, to trade at $78.44/bbl at 09.00 GMT.

    Upward pressure:
    Oil rallied as tensions continued to escalate in the Middle East. The conflict has now dragged in OPEC’s second-largest oil producer, Iran.
    Brent’s price surged following reports that Israel’s next target could be Tehran’s oil and energy facilities, market analysts said.

    “Oil prices skyrocketed… as investors scrambled for cover amid the brewing chaos in the Middle East,” SPI Asset Management’s managing partner Stephen Innes said.

    The Pentagon and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) are “discussing” possible airstrikes on Iranian oil infrastructure in response to Tehran’s missile attack earlier this week, US President Joe Biden said.

    In a clip shared by Reuters, when asked if Washington would back an Israeli attack on Iran’s oil facilities, Biden responded, “We are discussing that.”

    “Brent crude rose… on the news [that Israel could strike Iranian oil sites] as markets start to price in the likelihood of supply disruptions in the Middle East,” ANZ Bank’s senior commodity strategist Daniel Hynes remarked.

    “The region accounts for about a third of global supply,” Hynes added.

    Downward pressure:
    Brent’s price felt some downward pressure as Libya’s state-owned oil company National Oil Corporation (NOC), which oversees most of the country's oil resources, officially lifted force majeure on oil production and exports yesterday.

    Crude oil production in the Sharara and El-feel oilfields, two of the largest Libyan oil production sites, and exports from Essider have resumed, NOC said in a statement.

    The news comes as OPEC+ plans to proceed with production hikes in December, a move that will push the global oil market into over-supplied territory, according to market analysts.

    Libya has a production capacity of about 1.2 million b/d, according to OPEC.




2024 November 9

13:41 Montreal port employers threaten shutdown over labour dispute
12:49 China Merchants signs letter of intent with Brazilian port authority Portos do Parana
11:08 ZIM integrates Hoopo’s solar tracking solutions
09:52 Mexican terminal TMAZ welcomes arrival of MSC vessel

2024 November 8

18:00 Greece, Turkey to keep talking on maritime boundaries agenda
17:35 Montreal Port urges Trudeau government to end strike
17:24 Yangzijiang Shipbuilding receives 98 new orders this year
16:57 Utilizing Milbros UV Graphs improves chemical tank cleaning safety and turnaround
16:25 Transnet National Ports Authority pilots usage of cleaner fuels on its tugboat fleet
15:34 Wallenius Wilhelmsen exercise options for two additional 11,700 CEU Shaper vessels
15:02 IMO heads to COP 29 to promote net-zero framework for shipping
14:45 Fincantieri, VARD and Sandock Austral Shipyards form alliance around the Afrika Offshore Patrol Vessel
14:25 KOTUG’s SD Waalo begins maiden voyage under bp charter for LNG operations
12:43 QatarEnergy inaugurates four LNG vessels, the first from Korean shipyards
12:24 Fincantieri finalizes order with Crystal for a new high-end cruise ship
10:09 Friday Shipbrokers fix chartering project with Boskalis to transport car carrier to China for repair
09:20 ExxonMobil successfully supplies Hapag-Lloyd with B25 bio marine fuel blend in Antwerp

2024 November 7

18:00 Innovation Norway and Team Norway sign two agreements aimed at advancing sustainable maritime solutions
17:54 MABUX: Bunker price trends in the world's four largest hubs, Nov 4 - Nov 8, 2024
17:36 Konecranes expands emissions reduction ambition by committing to setting long-term, science-based net-zero targets
17:16 HD KSOE receives AiP from LR and LISCR for ammonia fuel-related equipment
17:08 ClassNK granted its “ELW (HP)” notation to bulk carrier “ROYAL LAUREL”
16:42 Equinor strengthens its position in the Norwegian Sea
16:24 Provaris Energy raises A$1.5 million to support hydrogen and CO₂ initiatives
15:56 Catator joins Ammonia Energy Association to accelerate adoption of ammonia for shipping
15:46 Scandlines wins innovation award of the German mobility industry
14:33 Flex LNG agrees to amend the existing time charter agreements for the two LNG carriers
13:41 ADNOC secures 15-year sales and purchase agreement for Ruwais LNG project
13:07 Three fugitive methane detection and measurement technology companies selected for feasibility studies
12:44 Irving Shipbuilding chooses TMC for Canadian patrol ships
12:24 ADNOC awards $490 mln contract to expand world’s largest 3D seismic survey
11:59 First Damen Shrimp Trawler 2607 completes sea trials
11:13 GTT receives an order from a Korean shipyard for the tank design of a new Floating Storage Regasification Unit
10:58 Hapag-Lloyd orders 24 LNG- fuelled boxships

2024 November 6

18:00 DFDS launches a new freight ferry service between Italy and Egypt
17:34 Viking names two newest Nile River ships in Luxor
17:18 Enova grants EUR 65m to five hydrogen projects for maritime fuel in Norway
16:48 COSCO SHIPPING signed a strategic cooperation agreement with BYD
16:25 Shipyards deliver a record 410 container ships in 2024
15:28 Syngenta and Maersk extend partnership in more sustainable and innovative supply chain solutions
14:41 Ports of Szczecin and Swinoujscie post results for the first three quarters of 2024
14:18 China plans to increase low-carbon bunkering capacity at Shanghai Port to more than 1 million tonnes per year by 2030
13:44 Singapore Methanol signs MOU with Global Energy to advance bio-methanol fuel
12:23 Höegh Evi signs MoU with the port of Port-La Nouvelle to develop a floating terminal for hydrogen imports
11:59 TORM capital increase in connection with delivery of one 2015-built MR vessel
11:29 Intra-Asia сontainer shipping market outpaces global growth – Drewry
10:09 ICTSI net income up 31% to US$632.58mln in Jan-Sept 2024
09:04 Guangzhou Shipbuilding completes the annual ship delivery target
08:52 CSSC held naming ceremony for last of 10 container ships built for Seaspan

2024 November 5

18:27 RS successfully completes annual survey of the legendary nuclear-powered icebreaker LENIN
18:24 Expanded emissions rules to be implemented at California ports from January 1, 2025
17:35 COSCO Shipping launches innovative ammonia-fueled ammonia/LPG vessel design
17:19 PIL orders five more LNG dual-fuel vessels from Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding
16:57 Chevron expands supply of marine lubricants to include Port Elizabeth, South Africa
16:29 EDGE Group and Fincantieri sign MoU to jointly develop underwater solutions
15:53 Cadeler signs firm contracts with ScottishPower Renewables for East Anglia TWO foundation and turbine transportation and installation
15:03 Sea1 Offshore steps up with two new vessel orders
14:35 COSCO SHIPPING becomes second largest shareholder of Shenzhen Yantian Port
13:48 MOL (Asia Oceania) invests in joint development/investment 'logistics infrastructure' projects in Southeast Asia
13:13 Kongsberg Maritime propulsion selected for new Peruvian Navy frigate programme
12:53 ADNOC and Masdar collaborate with Microsoft to drive AI deployment and low-carbon solutions
12:24 MOL to build logistic center on Kobe's Port Island
11:19 APM Terminals announces appointment of new Managing Director for Suez Canal Container Terminal
10:42 Hapag-Lloyd christens the “Hamburg Express” in the Port of Hamburg

2024 November 4

17:27 Hapag-Lloyd christens the “Hamburg Express” in the Port of Hamburg
15:52 Paradip Port to be fully mechanised by 2030
14:13 Autonomous vessel to sail 1,500 km from Mumbai to Tuticorin
13:48 DPA Kandla in a plan for new container terminal and multipurpose berth with ₹27,000 crore investment
12:18 China's 41st Antarctic expedition begins
10:34 10 years old Meyer Turku aims for carbon-neutral shipbuilding