Value Products News

Imports of fuel oil bound for the U.S. Gulf Coast fell to a five-year low last month as refiners ran more cheap, heavy Canadian crude and geopolitical tensions in the Middle East pressured fuel oil flows.Fuel oil deliveries to the Gulf Coast dwindled in February to just 318,000 barrels per day (bpd), a 20% drop from the prior month and marking their lowest level since February 2019, data from tanker tracking firm, Kpler showed.Heavy fuel oil feedstocks like high sulfur fuel oil…

Istanbul-based tanker operator Palmali has become the top shipper for Ukraine's Black Sea-borne sunflower oil exports, one of the country's key export products, and plans to expand further, its chairman Mubariz Mansimov said.Azeri-born Mansimov said Palmali was the most active operator in the increasingly dangerous Black Sea, and plans to expand its presence in Ukraine by placing an order for 10 more cargo carriers and starting trading operations early next year. Since pulling out of the U.N.-brokered deal that guaranteed safe shipment of Ukrainian food products in July…

Venezuela's oil exports last year declined due to infrastructure outages, U.S. sanctions and rising competition in its key Asia market despite assistance from ally Iran, according to shipping data and documents.Exports this year are expected to get a lift after the United States relaxed oil sanctions by authorizing some partners of state-run firm Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) to resume taking Venezuelan crude.Iran expanded its role in Venezuela last year, sending supplies to boost exports and technicians to repair a refinery.

The Admiralty Shipyard in St Petersburg has begun cutting steel for the third in the series of trawlers being built for the Russian Fishery Company, with this vessel’s keel expected to be laid in June next year.In total, the Admiralty Shipyards will build 10 modern super trawlers for the RFC. The entire series will be built in pairs, two vessels a year with an interval of about a year between the pairs. The total investment in the construction of the series is more than 65 billion rubles.Currently, the hull of the first vessel is practically formed on the slipway. The launch of the first pair is scheduled for next spring.“Despite the fact that Russian shipyards have not completed such projects before…

Japan’s third-largest oil refining company, Cosmo Oil, , has started building stocks of very-low-sulfur fuel oil (VLSFO) for supply to domestic marine fuel markets from next month (October 2019) ahead of the IMO 2020 mandate requiring ships globally to reduce their bunker fuel sulfur content to 0.5% from the current 3.5% from January 2020.Cosmo Oil is using VLSFO produced at its residue desulfurizer (RDS) unit at its Chiba refinery near Tokyo to build the stocks, Cosmo Oil’sPresident Shunichi Tanaka said on Sunday…

Exxon Mobil Corp is considering a multi-billion dollar investment at its Singapore refinery, the company's largest, ahead of new global shipping fuel regulations starting in 2020, a senior executive said on Wednesday."We are currently assessing a multi-billion project in our integrated manufacturing facility here in Singapore," Matt Bergeron, vice president of Asia Pacific Fuels Business at Exxon, said at a bunkering conference."Should the project proceed, we plan to implement…

High-sulphur fuel oil (HSFO), essentially the leftovers of an oil refiner's output, will still flow from refineries around the world even after new rules start up in 2020 curtailing its use in the global shipping fleet, a Reuters survey showed.Sixty percent of the 33 refineries contacted by Reuters in a global survey will still produce HSFO in 2020 although the supply will tighten as 70 percent of these refiners plan to reduce their output.Starting that year, ships will have to use marine fuel…

Ohio-based shipping firm the Interlake Steamship Company announced it will time charter a 418-foot, 14,400-short-ton capacity dry cargo barge from the U.S. East Coast to operate on the Great Lakes starting this spring.The single-hold covered hopper barge Montville, owned and operated by Connecticut-based towing services provider Moran Towing Corp, will be under charter through 2019 with options to extend.The time charter deal marks a first for Great Lakes carrier Interlake, whose owned fleet includes nine self-unloading vessels ranging in carrying capacity from 24,000 to 68,000 gross tons.

The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) has signed agreements with Total of France, awarding them stakes in two of Abu Dhabi’s new offshore concessions. Under the terms of the agreements, Total has been awarded a 20% interest in the Umm Shaif and Nasr concession and a 5% interest in the Lower Zakum concession. Total is ADNOC’s largest and one of its longest international partners, active in Abu Dhabi’s oil and gas sector since 1939. Today, the French super-major collaborates with ADNOC across the value chain, from offshore and onshore exploration, development and production, to processing, products and shipping. Total contributed…

South Korea's third-largest refiner S-Oil Corp signed a long-term liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply contract with Malaysia's Petronas for 15 years starting from next year, the North Asia company said on Friday. S-Oil expects to buy 700,000 tonnes of LNG per year from state-owned Petronas from March 2018 through March 2033, it said in a stock filing exchange. "We have inked the deal on good terms for our company amid the current favourable LNG market conditions," said the refiner in the filing. S-Oil, whose main shareholder is Saudi Aramco, declined to provide price details for the deal. The refiner said in a separate statement the deal was part of its efforts to ensure stable supplies of LNG.

Announcing further investment in container fleet, liner shipping company Hapag-Lloyd has ordered a total of 5,750 refrigerated containers (reefers) of the latest generation – including 5,000 x 40-foot and 750 x 20-foot units. In addition, 1,000 of the new containers are equipped with “controlled atmosphere” technology, which allows various types of fruits and vegetables to be transported for longer periods of time while maintaining a consistent quality. In addition to temperature-sensitive goods – such as fruits…

With delivery beginning in October 2016, the new order strengthens market position in the transport of temperature-sensitive goods / Tests with new refrigeration equipment and natural refrigerants. Hapag-Lloyd will also be investing in its container fleet this year: The liner shipping company has ordered a total of 5,750 refrigerated containers (reefers) of the latest generation – including 5,000 x 40-foot and 750 x 20-foot units. In addition, 1,000 of the new containers are equipped with “controlled atmosphere” technology, which allows various types of fruits and vegetables to be transported for longer periods of time while maintaining a consistent quality.

Electrochemical technologies firm De Nora has announced a brokerage agreement with MARCAS, a buying group for the maritime industry. The deal means that MARCAS members representing close to 1,700 vessels can access aggregate purchasing deals with De Nora for its BALPURE ballast water treatment system (BWTS) and spare parts at a discount. MARCAS obtains the best value products and services for its members, with a commitment to price, quality, assured supply and delivery, and technical innovation. The agreement with De Nora extends to both newbuild and retrofit markets.

Press release- A month after celebrating its 30th anniversary, the Marseille-based Port Community System operator MGI has been welcomed as the newest member of the International Port Community Systems Association (IPCSA). MGI (Marseille Gyptis International) becomes IPCSA's 28th member and the association's second member based in France. “Nearly 30 ports in France and overseas have implemented the Cargo Community System AP+, MGI‟s and SOGET‟s flagship product since 2005 – including Mauritius, Benin, Togo and New Caledonia. Coinciding with its 30th anniversary in December 2015, MGI launched Ci5 (Cargo intelligence 5), its new flagship software solution designed to succeed and build on AP+.

The Russian Joint Venture between Rosneft, Sberbank Investments and Pietro Barbaro S.p.A. closed the acquisition of the Pietro Barbaro Group shipping assets in the Russian Federation (100% share of Prime Shipping group of companies). Prime Shipping is one of the leaders of the Russian river and sea transportation tanker market. The deal was financed by Sberbank. The acquisition of a logistics asset will allow Rosneft to strengthen its positions in the river transportation market and enhance the efficiency of operations, including that in the area of oil and oil products trading, and secure tanker fleet transportation. In particular, modern fleet of Prime Shipping will enable optimization of Rosneft’s transport charges…

The Society for Gas and Marine Fuel (SGMF) recently interviewed members with Sean Andersen and Tony Haston of Dixon Valve & Coupling, who weighed in on their company, its products, operations and place within the marine fuels industry. Dixon Valve & Coupling - who are you and what do you do? What products/services do you provide? Dixon, founded in 1916, is a premier global manufacturer and supplier of hose couplings, valves, dry disconnects, swivels and other fluid transfer and control products. Dixon provides a wide range of products for numerous industries including petroleum exploration, refining, transportation, chemical processing, food and beverage, steel, fire protection, construction, mining and manufacturing. What does Dixon hope to achieve in the next five years?

The St. Lawrence Seaway reported that year-to-date cargo shipments of more than 24 million metric tons moved through the system for the period March 28 to September 30 – an increase of nearly 5 percent over September 2013. U.S. grain continued its upward trend posting a 14.6 percent increase over the same time last year. “Cargo tonnage moved through the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway System during the month of September continues to be robust and reflects positively on the economy and the shipping industry,” said Administrator Betty Sutton of the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation.

Technip was awarded by The Bahrain Petroleum Company (BAPCO) a significant (1) contract on a reimbursable basis to develop the Front-End Engineering Design (FEED) of the refinery located in the Kingdom of Bahrain. The FEED contract covers four main work packages that include units aimed at processing the “bottom of the barrel” components to high value products, and all associated offsites and utilities to provide seamless integration with existing refinery facilities earmarked for retention post this major modernization. The project aims at enhancing the refinery configuration, by increasing the throughput from 267,000 to 360,000 barrel per day as well as improving the product slate and profitability.

Area companies can learn how to reduce costs and increase the efficiency of their global supply chain at a seminar on Foreign-Trade Zones on May 30 at Firestone Country Club in Akron. Hosted by the Northeast Ohio Trade and Economic Consortium (NEOTEC) and the Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Port Authority in conjunction with the Greater Akron Chamber, the half-day seminar will bring together nationally renowned FTZ experts to discuss the program’s benefits and how it helps companies become more globally competitive. Presenters include Dan Griswold, president of the National Association of Foreign-Trade Zones (NAFTZ) in Washington, D.C.; Trey Boring, a NAFTZ board member and senior vice president of IMS Worldwide, Inc.

OW Bunker announced that it has entered into agreements with the Rubis Tank Terminal in Rotterdam and the Vesta Tank Terminal in Antwerp, to allow for increased access and guaranteed supply at key bunkering ports. The investment in direct supply facilities comes in response to increasing demand for RMK 1 percent 500 cst fuel oil, a cost-efficient low sulphur fuel, which offers savings for operators transiting within the European ECA. OW Bunker Netherlands' exclusive contract with the 72,000-cubic-meter Rubis Tank Terminal in Rotterdam will support the supply of all grades of marine fuel on both spot and contract basis, and will guarantee supply of RMK 1 percent 500 cst fuel oil.

Partnership Creates Regional Foreign-Trade Zone Advantage. The Northeast Ohio Trade & Economic Consortium (NEOTEC) has entered into an agreement with the Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Port Authority for the administration of Foreign-Trade Zone (FTZ) 40. The Port Authority is grantee of FTZ 40, which includes 10 sites totaling more than 5,600 acres in Cuyahoga, Lorain and Ashtabula counties. NEOTEC, a nonprofit regional economic development organization located in Kent, is grantee of FTZ 181, with 27 sites in 8 counties throughout Northeast Ohio. The agreement brings the combined acreage of both zones to more than 11,000. In addition to streamlining zone administrative duties…

Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) completed the sale of its global marine services business, known for many years as Drew Marine, to J. F. Lehman & Co. for approximately $120m before tax. Ashland will use the net proceeds to reduce debt. With revenues of approximately $140m a year, the Drew Marine business has approximately 325 employees, 28 offices and 98 stocking locations in 47 countries. The business is a recognized global leader in providing technical solutions, high-value products and services to the global marine industry. Ashland and J.F. Lehman & Co. expect to produce a smooth transition with no disruption in customer service or supply. Summarizing the sale, James J. “We are extremely excited to now own the Drew Marine business and we welcome their employees to the J.F. Lehman & Co.

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