Americas News
Singapore HSFO Contamination Seen in Houston: Report
The contamination in HSFO seen in Singapore in recent weeks may have spread to Houston.
Several testing agencies have reported finding chlorinated hydrocarbons in Singapore HSFO samples in recent weeks. On Wednesday Singapore's MPA said Glencore was the original supplier, with more deliveries then made by PetroChina, about 200 ships receiving the fuel in total and about 80 reporting problems with fuels pumps and engines afterwards.
That problem has now been found in Houston as well, maritime news site TradeWinds reported on Wednesday. Contaminated bunkers are understood to have been supplied by Glencore in Houston as well, and have been detected as present on board at least one vessel, according to the report.
A Glencore representative declined to comment on the report when contacted by Ship & Bunker on Tuesday.
If the contamination has spread to Houston, it is likely to take much longer for the problem to be resolved than with a localised crisis. Comparisons have already been made between Singapore's recent problem and the worldwide contamination crisis that stemmed from Houston in 2018.
