Matrix Bharat Aims for 8-10% Bunker Sales Growth Through India and Singapore Business Expansion

by Ship & Bunker News Team
Friday August 26, 2016

Ashok Sharma, CEO of Matrix Bharat Pte. Ltd. (MXB) says that, through the expansion of its business in India and Singapore, the company is aiming for a 8-10 percent growth in its bunker sales in the 2017 year, Platts reports.

While Sharma did not detail the company's specific plans for expansion in Singapore, the CEO did say that the MXB is planning to expand in India by growing its customer base and improving the speed of its bunker fuel deliveries there through infrastructure development.

MXB is said to currently supply various grades of HFO and MGO by both barge and pipeline, with a total of 12 barges operating in Mumbai and Kochi on a contractual basis.

Jawahar Dweep Island, which handles crude and petroleum off Mumbai, is said to be set to see one of its four existing jetties converted to load barges by March 2017.

"Once the barge is operational, bunkering of around 2,000 mt (metric tonnes) of marine fuel, which usually takes about 2-3 days, will take only 2-3 hours," said Sharma.

Sharma noted that the MXB currently sees about 1 million mt in cargo trading and bunker sales annually, with India's overall bunker sales to foreign-flagged vessels expected to see an annual growth of 10-12 percent, reaching 1.7 million mt by 2017.

In October, Ship & Bunker reported that the Indian government was easing customs and excise duties on bunkers by extending tax exemptions to ships carrying containers domestically.