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Oil Trading News

06 Mar 2024

Russia Oil Fleet Shifts Away from Liberia, Marshall Island Flags Amid US Sanctions Crackdown

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Dozens of oil tankers used by Russia have stopped sailing under the Liberian and Marshall Islands flags in recent weeks after the United States ramped up sanctions enforcement on ships linked to those registries, according to shipping data and interviews with industry and government officials.The shift reflects the close relationship between the U.S. and the flag administration companies of Liberia and the Marshall Islands, which are headquartered not in their home countries, but in Virginia, just miles from Washington D.C. and within the jurisdiction of U.S.

05 Mar 2024

Turkish Oil Terminal Halts Russian Oil Business

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One of Turkey's mid-sized Mediterranean oil terminals - the Dortyol terminal - will no longer accept Russian imports after receiving record volumes last year, amid an increase in sanctions pressure by the United States.Turkey has become one of the biggest importers of Russian crude and fuel since 2022, after the West imposed sanctions on Moscow for the invasion of Ukraine. Russia responded by re-routing oil away from Europe and the U.S. to Asia, Turkey and Africa.Global Terminal Services' (GTS)…

29 Nov 2023

Oil Loadings from Black Sea Ports Remain Suspended

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Oil loadings from the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk and the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) terminal have not resumed due to an ongoing storm forcing exporters to look for alternative routes, three sources familiar with exports told Reuters on Wednesday.Novorossiysk and the CPC terminal account for about 2 million barrels of oil per day (bpd) from Russia and Kazakhstan."A storm warning is in effect in Novorossiysk. It is raining, and the wave height is from two to four meters…

27 Jul 2023

Obscure Traders Ship Half Russia's Oil Exports to India, China After Sanctions

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A Liberian-flagged oil tanker set sail in May from Russia's Ust-Luga port carrying crude on behalf of a little-known trading company based in Hong Kong. Before the ship had even reached its destination in India, the cargo changed hands.The new owner of the 100,000 tonnes of Urals crude carried on the Leopard I was a similarly low-profile outfit, Guron Trading, also based in Hong Kong, according to two trading sources.The number of little-known trading firms relied on by Moscow to export large volumes of crude exports to Asia has mushroomed in recent months…

13 Jun 2023

Methanol Bunkering Gaining Interest Among Global Players

(Image: Maersk)

Denmark's Maersk said on Monday it has secured fuel for the world's first container vessel able to run on carbon-neutral methanol for its inaugural journey.Interest in methanol as an alternative fuel for bunkering has grown in the shipping industry, which seeks to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.Below is a list of key upcoming methanol bunkering-related projects by companies and ports:COMPANIES:*A.P. Moller-MaerskMaersk has ordered 19 methanol-enabled ships to work towards a goal of transporting 25% of its ocean cargo using green fuels by 2030.

16 Jan 2023

Singapore's Top Bunker Suppliers of 2022

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Equatorial Marine Fuel Management Services Pte Ltd rose one spot to become the top marine fuel supplier at world's largest bunkering hub Singapore in 2022, official data showed on Monday.Equatorial overtook PetroChina International Singapore Pte Ltd, who dipped from its top ranking in 2021 to second spot in 2022, while Trafigura's TFG Marine Pte Ltd climbed two spots to become third-largest supplier, data from the Maritime and Port Authority (MPA) of Singapore showed.Vitol Bunkers Pte Ltd maintained fourth in 2022 as with the previous year, while Shell Plc's Singapore bunkering unit, Shell Eas

30 Nov 2022

Venezuelan Oil Exports Flow Using False Documents, Ships Linked to Iran

When the supertanker Young Yong sailed to the Chinese port of Qingdao in September last year, it had quality certificates for its cargo stating it was transporting Malaysian crude oil, according to the documents reviewed by Reuters.But satellite images and photos show the Chinese-owned ship had loaded the oil four months earlier in Venezuela, an OPEC nation in South America under U.S. oil sanctions.The Young Yong is one of three vessels identified by Reuters that were chartered by little-known companies to export Venezuelan oil and used false documents to conceal its origin, according to shipping documents and 11 sources with knowledge of the trade.Two of those tankers, including the Young Yong, were designated this month by U.S.

26 Aug 2022

Chinese Defense Firm Takes Over Lifting Venezuelan Oil for Debt Offset

China has entrusted a defense-focussed state firm to ship millions of barrels of Venezuelan oil despite U.S. sanctions, part of a deal to offset Caracas' billions of dollars of debt to Beijing, according to three sources and tanker tracking data. China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC) stopped carrying Venezuelan oil in August 2019 after Washington tightened sanctions on the South American exporter. But it continued to find its way to China via traders who rebranded the fuel as Malaysian, Reuters has reported.

18 Aug 2022

Oil Companies Work Around Jones Act to Supply US Fuel Markets

U.S. oil companies are working around a century-old shipping law to supply fuel to the U.S. East Coast, according to data from Refinitiv and oil trading sources, as high demand for gasoline and global disruptions in fuel markets sent prices higher.Traders are increasingly sending unfinished gasoline components from the Gulf Coast to Buckeye Partners LP’s terminal in the Bahamas, also known as Borco, where they are blended into finished gasoline to be sent to the U.S. East Coast. The uncommon trade is a sign of heavy demand for products up and down the coast, home of some of the nation's largest consumer markets.The trade represents a legal workaround to the Jones Act, which requires goods moved between U.S. ports to be carried by ships built domestically and staffed by U.S.

28 Jun 2022

War in Ukraine Raises Global Shipping Costs, Stifles Trade -UNCTAD

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The war in the Ukraine is stifling trade and logistics of the country and the Black Sea region, increasing global vessel demand and the cost of shipping around the world, the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) said. Container shipping and global value chains have been disrupted and many countries have had to look further afield for suppliers of oil, gas and grain.In a report entitled “Maritime trade disrupted: The war in Ukraine and its effects on maritime trade logistics” published on 28 June 28…

06 May 2022

Singapore Port Authority Says Tainted Bunker Fuel Came from UAE

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Contaminated fuel supplied to some 200 ships in Singapore came from a tanker that loaded the oil from Khor Fakkan port in the United Arab Emirates, the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said.MPA began investigations after it was notified on March 14 that a number of ships had been supplied with high-sulphur fuel oil (HSFO) containing high concentration levels of chlorinated organic compounds (COC) in Singapore.MPA said in April that the tainted oil was supplied by Glencore Singapore Pte Ltd.In further investigations to trace the oil's origin…

02 Mar 2022

Russian Oil Buyers Struggle to Charter Vessels

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Buyers of Russian oil have faced difficulties over payments and availability of vessels after imposition of Western sanctions against Moscow over Ukraine, traders said on Monday, while BP Plc has canceled fuel oil loadings from a Black Sea port.The West has introduced sweeping sanctions, including on the banking sector, after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Russia calls its action a "special operation" to disarm Ukraine.The United States and its allies on Saturday moved to block certain Russian banks' access to the SWIFT international payment system that helps international trade flow smoothly.

04 Feb 2022

European Oil Shipments Delayed After Cyber Attacks

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Tanker and barge shipments in and out of Europe's biggest oil hub have been delayed by up to a week as four storage companies scramble to resume operations after cyber attacks, sources familiar with the matter said.Since the end of last week, storage company Oiltanking and oil trading firm Mabanaft, both owned by Germany's Marquard & Bahls, have been hit by hackers. Belgium's SEA-TANK and Dutch fuel storage firm Evos have also been affected.The companies have had to suspend some operations, affecting oil flows in the Netherlands, Belgium and across Germany.

17 Jan 2022

PetroChina Tops Singapore's List of 2021 Bunker Fuel Suppliers

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PetroChina International Singapore Pte Ltd climbed three spots to be the top marine fuel supplier in the world's biggest ship refueling hub in 2021 while the overall number of licensed suppliers fell by four to 41, official data showed on Monday.Shell Plc's Singapore bunkering unit, Shell Eastern Trading Pte Ltd, fell from the top ranking in 2020 to third, behind Singapore's Equatorial Marine Fuel Management Services Pte Ltd in second place, unchanged from 2020, the Maritime and Port Authority (MPA) of Singapore data showed.Vitol Bunkers Pte Ltd…

11 Nov 2021

Gunvor Sells Its Rotterdam Oil Terminal to GES

(Photo: Port of Rotterdam)

Global Energy Storage, a new company that aims to store products such as hydrogen and biofuels, said on Thursday it is buying assets in Rotterdam from commodities firm Gunvor Group and will redevelop 20 hectares (49 acres) of land in the port for its operations.Financial details of the purchase, which includes part of Gunvor's Stargate Oil Terminal, were not disclosed.The company's plan is to "take an existing oil terminal and develop it into a state-of-the-art low-carbon products terminal…

28 Oct 2021

Singapore Court Dismisses Oil Tycoon Family's Appeal Against Ocean Tanker Suit

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Singapore's highest court has dismissed an appeal by oil tycoon Lim Oon Kuin and his two children after they were successfully sued for breach of fiduciary duties by the court-appointed managers of a company they once owned.Lim is the founder of defunct Hin Leong Trading Pte Ltd and Ocean Tankers, once one of Asia's largest oil trading and shipping firms, which both went under judicial management in 2020, after oil prices collapsed."The entire conduct of this litigation has led to an immensely unsatisfactory state of affairs…

04 Aug 2021

Venezuela's Oil Exports Up in July, Fueled by Ship-to-ship Transfers

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Venezuela's oil exports increased for the second consecutive month to 713,097 barrels per day (bpd) in July, as state-run PDVSA offset loading delays at its main port by boosting ship-to-ship transfers, according to tracking data and documents.That was Venezuela's highest level of oil exports since February, according to the data.A growing number of mostly unknown clients with no record in oil trading have helped PDVSA increase shipments, most of which now goes to Asia. Its traditional…

30 Apr 2021

Singapore Adds 23 Charges Against Founder of Oil Trader Hin Leong

A Singapore prosecutor filed 23 additional forgery-related charges on Friday against Lim Oon Kuin, the founder of collapsed oil trading firm Hin Leong Trading Pte Ltd.Last year, police had charged the 79-year-old former oil tycoon, better known as O K Lim, with two counts of abetment of forgery for the purpose of cheating.Friday's charges accuse Lim of instigating a Hin Leong employee to forge documents supposedly issued by UT Singapore Services Pte Ltd.The paperwork stated that Hin Leong had transferred cargoes of oil products to China Aviation Oil (Singapore) Corp between June 2019 and March 2020, the charge sheets showed.Lim was also…

07 Jun 2021

Trafigura, Yara Sign Deal on Ammonia for Shipping Fuel

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Global commodities trader Trafigura and Norway's Yara said on Monday they had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) aiming to supply the marine industry with carbon emissions-free ammonia for fuel.Yara will supply Trafigura with clean ammonia and together the two firms will jointly conduct research and develop marine fuel infrastructure and market opportunities for both "green" and "blue" ammonia, they said.Ammonia, a hydrogen-carrying chemical used as a fertilizer but also in other applications such as explosives, is one of several candidates to become the shipping industry's preferred z

10 Jun 2021

Trafigura Posts Highest-ever First Half Profit

Trafigura Chief Executive Officer Jeremy Weir - Credit: Trafigura

Global commodities trader Trafigura on Thursday posted its highest-ever first-half net profit and core earnings, largely driven by the economic recovery.The Geneva-based trader's net profit rose to $2.1 billion for the period ending March 31, from 500 million the previous year. The company's financial year ends on Sept. 30.Revenue rose 19% to $98 billion while core earnings were $3.7 billion, up over 50% from a year before. Gross profit rose similarly to $4.3 billion from $2.8 billion…

21 Jun 2021

As Iran Eyes Return to Oil Trading, Storage at Sea Rises

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Iran could quickly export millions of barrels of oil it is holding in storage if it reaches a deal with the United States on its nuclear program and has been moving oil into place to prepare for an eventual restart, four traders and industrial sources said.The U.S. and Iran began in mid-June their sixth round of indirect talks on reviving a 2015 nuclear deal that former U.S. President Donald Trump pulled out of in 2018. Trump reimposed sanctions on Iran’s energy sector, leading…

04 Jun 2021

Tanker Operators File Against Winson Oil in Latest Hin Leong Fallout

(File photo: Maersk Tankers)

Maersk Tankers Singapore Pte Ltd and Scorpio LR2 Pool Ltd have filed separate claims in the Singapore High Court against Winson Oil Trading Pte Ltd for failing to fulfil its contractual obligations, court documents show.The filings are the latest fallout in the unravelling of Hin Leong—once one of Asia's top oil traders—which has left creditors scrambling to recoup about $3.5 billion in debt.Hin Leong's collapse has triggered competing claims for cargoes and assets and ensnared…

24 May 2021

Lim Family's Global Assets on Radar After Singapore Court Move

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A Singapore court has approved a freeze on up to $3.5 billion of assets of the family behind collapsed Hin Leong Trading Pte Ltd, boosting the prospect of debt recovery from the former oil trading empire that counts some of the world's biggest banks among its creditors.Hin Leong was wound up in March after failing in a year-long effort to restructure more than $3 billion in debts after the COVID-19-led oil crash laid bare huge losses. Founder Lim Oon Kuin admitted in a court document…