EMEA News
Half of All Global Bunker Suppliers Will Disappear Due to OW Bunker's Collapse: Bunker Holding
The demise of OW Bunker has changed the state of the industry and placed immense pressure on smaller players, with some speculating that as many as half of global bunker suppliers will not survive, Shipping Watch reports.
"This market is to a large extent based on trust, with the approach being that if one was dealing with well-known players, it was virtually as good as having money in the bank," said Keld Demant, CEO of Denmark-based Bunker Holding A/S.
"When that trust disappears, the focus switches to a variety of other factors."
Demant said that companies now need to be able to overtly display sound equity, solidity, and dependable profits, a much harder task for smaller players than for the larger, established ones.
A consequence has also reportedly been tightening of credit on the part of banks, which has also created a more difficult atmosphere for smaller companies.
"What happened to OW Bunker was incredibly unfortunate, and no one wants to profit from someone else's misfortune, but the event has benefited the bigger and more consolidated players, whereas the market is now very tough for those who don't possess strong finances and a solid track record with the major suppliers," he said.
Demant adds that the trends have also applied at Bunker Holding, which saw positive results in 2014/2015 due to the bankruptcy, though the company was also reportedly helped along by a favourable court battle and existing corporate strategies.
With the loss of OW Bunker, Bunker Holding has now reportedly been bumped up to second place in the global market.
"It's not really so much the fact that they left the market, but rather the people we've been able to hire from there, as they've contributed to the positive result," said Demant.
"We expect quite a lot from this in the coming years."
It was first reported late last year that Bunker Holding had entered the physical supply market with ex-OW Bunker staff.
