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Marine Fuel Oil News

19 Dec 2023

MOL to Expand Fleet With 5 New LNG-fueled Capesize Bulkers

(Credit: Mitsui O.S.K. Lines)

Japanese shipping major Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) has decided to expand its fleet with the additional five newbuilding dual-fueled Capesize bulkers, which can burn either LNG or conventional marine fuel oil.Two of the vessels will be ordered to Nihon Shipyard and built by Imabari Shipbuilding, while there remaining three will be built by Chinese CSSC Qingdao Beihai Shipbuilding.The vessels are slated for delivery from 2026 to 2027, according to MOL. Including these five vessels, MOL will add a total of 13 LNG-fueled Capesize bulkers in their fleet.

16 Jan 2023

Singapore's Top Bunker Suppliers of 2022

© Igor Groshev / Adobe Stock

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

13 Dec 2022

Singapore Bunker Sales Hit 22-month High

© Igor Groshev / Adobe Stock

Marine fuel sales at Singapore jumped to a 22-month high in November, latest official data showed on Tueday, as lower prices lifted buying interest at the world's largest bunkering hub.November bunker sales totalled 4.37 million tonnes, climbing 3% month-on-month and up 4% year-on-year, data from Singapore's Maritime and Port Authority showed.The higher sales came despite lower vessel arrivals for bunkering at Singapore, which dipped dipped by 4% month-on-month at 3,299 vessel calls, although edged higher by 3% year-on-year.

05 Dec 2022

Coast Guard Monitoring Oil Discharge from Scuttled Liberty Ship

A seasonal oil sheen on Aug. 29, 2022, near Destin, Fla. Coast Guard and Florida Department of Environmental Protection have been monitoring periodic oil discharge from Liberty Ship Thomas Heyward. (Photo: Joshua Ronkowski / U.S. Coast Guard)

The U.S. Coast Guard and Florida’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) are monitoring periodic discharges of oil from the Liberty Ship Thomas Heyward, a World War II era vessel sunk in 1977 to serve as an artificial reef approximately six miles southwest of Destin, Fla.Following Hurricane Sally in September 2020, the National Response Center (NRC) began receiving reports of pollution in the vicinity of the artificial reef. Coast Guard personnel conducted preliminary investigations…

14 Nov 2022

Singapore Marine Fuel Sales Hit One-year High in October

© anekoho/AdobeStock

Marine fuel sales in Singapore surged to a one-year high in October, latest official data showed on Monday, as more competitive prices attracted ships to refuel at the world's top bunkering hub. October bunker sales totaled 4.25 million tonnes, climbing 7% from September, while vessel arrivals for bunkering at Singapore rose 9% month-on-month at 3,431 vessel calls, data from Singapore's Maritime and Port Authority showed. Prices for ship refueling were lower in Singapore in October, compared with other regional bunkering ports such as Zhoushan and South Korea, bunker fuel traders said.

06 Jun 2022

Sinopec Fuel Oil Singapore Targets 50% Increase in Bunker Sales

© Igor Groshev / Adobe Stock

Sinopec Fuel Oil (Singapore) Pte Ltd aims to raise its monthly bunker sales volumes by more than 50% after it received a license from the Singapore government this month, the company’s general manager said on Monday.Chinese refiners are expanding their foothold in the global marine fuels sector by increasing sales and output of 0.5% low sulphur fuel oil at key ports in Zhoushan, in China, and Singapore in recent years.The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) awarded the bunker license to Sinopec's Singapore fuel oil unit on June 1, the MPA said on its website, allowing the company to

23 May 2022

BP, Rio Tinto in Year-long Marine Biofuel Trial

Credit: BP

Mining giant Rio Tinto has entered an agreement with the oil major BP to start a one-year biofuel trial to reduce carbon emissions from Rio Tinto’s marine fleet. Under the trial, BP is supplying Rio Tinto with marine biofuel for approximately 12 months. The fuel will be trialed on Rio Tinto’s RTM Tasman bulk carrier on a mix of Transatlantic and Atlantic-Pacific routes, in what has been described as "one of the longest-duration marine biofuel trials to date." "Sustainable biofuels…

09 May 2022

MOL Orders Four LNG-powered Car Carriers

For Illustration Only - ©Kalyakan/AdobeStock

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) has ordered four 7,000-unit capacity car carriers from Nihon Shipyard and Shin Kurushima Dockyard. The vessels will be powered by LNG.The vessels are the second series following four LNG-fueled car carriers, which are scheduled for delivery in 2024.The newly ordered ships are scheduled for delivery in succession, through 2024 to 2025. This will bring the company’s total orders for LNG-fueled car carriers to eight. According to MOL, compared to conventional marine fuel oil…

17 Jan 2022

PetroChina Tops Singapore's List of 2021 Bunker Fuel Suppliers

© Adwo / Adobe Stock

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…

03 Mar 2021

Baltic Exchange Adds LNG Powered Seaborne Gas Assessments

© Björn Wylezich / Adobe Stock

A new set of independent indices for the liquified natural gas (LNG) seaborne trade went live this week (2 March), based on the carriers burning LNG, rather than marine fuel oil or marine gas oil, as their primary fuel.Published twice weekly, the new indices have been given the acronym (BLNGg) and will be published alongside the current LNG indices which are based on LNG carriers burning Very Low Sulphur Fuel Oil (VLSFO). Historical data for the new indices will be available dating…

01 Dec 2020

NYK Inks Charter Deal for Pair of Methanol-fueled Chem Tankers

NYK Bulkship (Asia) Pte. Ltd., an NYK Group company based in Singapore, signed a long-term time charter contract with Waterfront Shipping Company Limited (WFS) for two newly built chemical carriers, each equipped with a dual-fuel engine that enables the vessels to be powered not only by marine fuel oil but also methanol.Planned for delivery from the Hyundai Mipo Dockyard (Korea) in 2022, the vessels will be delivered to WFS, a wholly owned subsidiary of Methanex Corporation, the world’s largest producer and supplier of methanol.

26 Nov 2020

China: INE, PetroChina to Deliver Marine Fuel Overseas

Alexey Novikov - AdobeStock

China's Shanghai International Energy Exchange (INE) said on Thursday it had signed an agreement with PetroChina International Co Ltd to cooperate on the overseas delivery for its low-sulfur fuel oil futures contract.Both parties have reached a consensus on cross-border overseas delivery for the marine oil and see the move as an "important foundation" for China's first futures delivery "going global", Shanghai Futures Exchange-owned INE said in a statement.This would be the first time a Chinese futures contract would be deliverable outside of China, which could boost the liquidity and increase

14 Sep 2020

Sri Lanka Plugs Leak on Fire-stricken Supertanker

Credit: Sri Lanka Navy

Sri Lanka has initiated repair work on the ruptured fuel oil tank in the engine room of a stricken fully loaded oil supertanker after plugging the leak, the country's Navy said.The supertanker is currently 52 nautical miles (96 kms) from the Sri Lankan coast, Navy spokesman Indika de Silva said. "Salvors are on board, they plugged the leak and the repair is still going...They have vacated the ruptured tank and transferred the dirty water into the ballast section," de Silva told Reuters. A fire broke out in the engine room of the Greek-owned New Diamond tanker on Sept.

10 Sep 2020

Sri Lanka: Fire-hit Tanker Towed Further Offshore as Wind Picks Up

Credit: Sri Lanka Navy

The Sri Lankan navy has towed a fire-stricken supertanker further out to sea to keep it off the coast of the Indian Ocean island after the wind picked up strength and changed direction, a spokesman said on Thursday.The tanker, loaded with 2 million barrels oil, was 50 nautical miles (95 km) from the east coast and moving in a northerly direction, the navy spokesman, Indika de Silva, said. Earlier, it had been headed southwest.The stricken vessel has raised fears of an environmental disaster…

24 Feb 2020

Hybrid drives: Siemens sends in the machines

A robot’s battle against emissions: Siemens articulated robots of different sizes assemble battery stacks at Trondheim, Norway. 
Credit: William Stoichevski

Encouraged by the success of a hybrid drives program, Siemens is going all out in Norway to automate production of that core marine energy storage enabler, the lithium battery. Offshore service vessel charterers, rig owners, ferry operators and ship owners are the target market. Trondheim’s technical university and a recent history of hosting battery makers and system integrators has made it launchpad for new applications involving the new BlueDrive Plus C drives and batteries.Siemens’ Norwegian head of strategy and business development…

06 Jun 2019

Sinopec Expands LSFO Production

China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (Sinopec ), China's first large-scale production of greener low-sulfur marine fuel oil (LSFO), announced the production capability of 10 million and 15 million tons of low-sulfur marine fuel oil in 2020 and 2023.The Beijing-based Chinese oil and gas enterprise said in a press release that by January 1, 2020, Zhoushan and other China major ports will be fully covered with Sinopec product availability, and more than 50 key overseas ports, including Singapore, will be covered with Sinopec supply ability.The commitment will contribute 600,000 tons of sulfur oxide emissions reduction, equivalent to shutting…

01 May 2019

Onboard Fuel Compatibility Testing is Growing

Picture Credit: Tom Fisk/Pexels

Parker Kittiwake is witnessing an increase in demand for onboard fuel compatibility testing.The trend reflects the urgency in the market as shipowners and operators take a more deliberate and proactive approach to mitigating the risks of potential marine fuel oil incompatibility and stability issues associated with the impending 2020 global sulphur cap regulation.With the majority of shipowners expected to opt for very low sulphur fuels of 0.5% or less to achieve compliance, the shipping industry is seeing a rise in new blended fuels appearing on the market.

29 Apr 2019

Singapore Investigating Bunker Tampering

© Igor Groshev / Adobe Stock

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) is investigating bunker craft operator Southernpec (Singapore) Pte Ltd for equipment tampering during a bunkering operation, the agency said in an email on Monday.The MPA had previously suspended Southernpec's operator licence "with effect from 25 April 2019 until further notice," it said in a statement released on Saturday."MPA is investigating the bunker craft operator and supplier ...

09 Apr 2019

MSC Boxship Spills Oil at Port of Sines

Work is ongoing to contain a “large oil spill” that contaminated waters in Port of Sines, Portugal late on Thursday night during a routine refuelling operation.MSC Sandra Panama-flagged container ship, operated by Swiss Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) has reported leakage of marine fuel oil while bunkering in the Sines harbour late on 4 April."The authorities were immediately informed and action was swiftly taken to minimize the environmental impact of the incident. We understand that removal of the oil from the water has progressed at a good pace," said a press note from MSC.MSC will continue to cooperate fully with the relevant authorities and provide full support and expertise to assist with any enquiries, it said.

18 Mar 2019

Sovcomflot Updates Fleet Strength

Russian maritime shipping company specializing in petroleum and LNG shipping Sovcomflot (SCF Group) said that Yevgeny Primakov (Icebreaker Ice-15) joined the fleet, the final vessel in a series of four new generation IBSV’s, engaged under a long-term time-charter agreement with Sakhalin Energy.The shipping company added that this makes a total fleet of 10 supply and standby vessels servicing Nogliki Base Camp (SEIC and ENL) at Sakhalin island (Sea of Okhotsk).The world’s first Aframax tanker to use LNG as her primary fuel Gagarin Prospect (114,000 DWT) entered service (July) on long-term time charter to Shell. In last October, Gagarin Prospect completed her first commercial voyage using LNG fuel…

07 Jan 2019

Bunker Delivery Note Amendments Enter into Force

Amendments to the bunker delivery note relating to the supply of marine fuel oil to ships which have fitted alternative mechanisms to address sulphur emission requirements entered into force on 1 January 2019.According to a press release from International Maritime Organization (IMO), the amendment enters into force as the shipping industry counts down to 1 January 2020, when the limit for sulphur in fuel oil will be reduced to 0.50% m/m outside emission control areas (ECAs), from 3.5% currently.The new limit under IMO's MARPOL treaty will have significant benefits for the environment and human health.In ECAS, the limit will remain at…

06 Jan 2019

Paris and Tokyo MoUs Warn on Sulfur Cap Compliance

The Maritime Authorities of the Paris and the Tokyo Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) on Port State Control will start issuing a letter of warning from 1 January 2019 on the sulphur content of marine fuels during inspections in order to increase awareness of and to encourage timely compliance with the new requirements.According to a release from the Paris MoU, the requirement of maximum sulphur content of 0,50% m/m for marine fuel oil will enter into force on 1 January 2020, which is known as the global 2020 sulphur cap.The implementation of the global 2020 sulphur cap will have considerable implications on ship operators, the fuel oil supply chain and the industry as a whole…

13 Nov 2018

Argus Adds New Marine Fuel Price Assessments

© Nikita Starichenko / Adobe Stock

Oil price reporting agency Argus has launched five new price assessments for low-sulphur marine fuels, ahead of new global rules capping the amount of sulphur in marine fuels, also known as bunkers.International Maritime Organization (IMO) regulations will cut the limit for sulphur in bunker fuels globally from 3.5 percent to 0.5 percent from the start of 2020."Argus is pleased to be taking the lead in bringing price transparency that enables this large and emerging oil market to advance trading in preparation for the IMO 2020 required fuels…