Supertankers Set to Take North Sea Crude to Asia in June
As many as four VLCC tankers could take North Sea crude oil to Asia this month, shipping fixtures show, after an Atlantic Basin supply glut forced prices to multi-year lows. The Samco Europe, Bunga Kasturi Empat, Britanis and Starlight Venture VLCCs - very large crude carriers - have been lined up for the shipments, according to the fixtures, equivalent to around 8.4 million barrels of Forties crude oil. The tankers have been booked by Unipec, Glencore's shipping arm ST Shipping, Trafigura and Vitol respectively. Unipec's tanker is listed as heading for Singapore, but the other three are expected to head for South Korea, which benefits from freight rebates and a free trade agreement with Europe. Both of these measures encourage local refiners to diversify their crude imports.
Work Starts at North Sea's Hound Point VLCC Jetty
A month of planned maintenance has started at the North Sea loading terminal for Forties crude, which helps set the Brent benchmark, an industry source said on Thursday, preventing VLCC loadings. Hound Point's Jetty 1 is the key loading berth for very large crude carriers (VLCCs), so the closure makes moving Forties to far-flung destinations like Asia more difficult and has weighed on the price of Forties. The facility's operator, BP, said in March Jetty 1 would close for maintenance from May 6 to June 8 . BP could not immediately be reached on Thursday. In 2014, spring maintenance at Jetty 1 lasted for about six weeks, during which time Forties differentials slumped to multi-year lows. (Reporting by Alex Lawler, editing by David Evans)
UK's Hound Point VLCC Jetty Down Until Sept. 15
The supertanker jetty at the North Sea's Hound Point crude oil terminal is shut for maintenance and will not reopen until Sept. 15, operator BP Plc said on Thursday, making sending excess cargoes to Asia more difficult for traders. The Hound Point jetty has two berths, but only Jetty 1 is large enough for the Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCC) that traders normally use to send cargoes to Asia. "Hound Point 1 berth will be closed to carry out maintenance. The berth won't be available for loading from 26th August 2014 until the work is complete, which we estimate as 15th Sept 2014," BP said in a statement. "Hound Point 2 berth is fully available for normal operations.
North Sea Crude-Forties up on Lower May Supplies
North Sea Forties crude differentials rose on Wednesday as traders pointed to lower supplies in May, and rumours of possible shipments to South Korea. The May loading programme is down 13 percent month-on-month, offering support to prices, especially as refineries start to return from spring maintenance. BP sold Chevron a cargo of Forties for loading May 2-4 at dated Brent plus 5 cents, up from the last trade on Thursday at dated Brent minus 15 cents. A bid from ENI for a late April loading was even higher, but failed to find any offers. Traders are also eyeing a possible VLCC cargo to South Korea in late April, but many have expressed doubts it will sail.
