Americas News
Houston Bunker Suppliers Take Steps to Address Quality Concerns
A number of bunker suppliers in the Houston and wider US Gulf Coast area are taking steps to reassure buyers their product is fit for purpose.
The move follows widely reported and ongoing bunker quality problems in the region understood to have impacted over 100 vessels with problems ranging from clogging of filters to fuel pump seizures.
Among those taking action is Houston-based GCC Bunkers (GCC), who told Ship & Bunker it has been putting its fuel through additional testing steps as part of measures to reassure its customers.
"We have engaged V-TIC Services to perform not only ISO 8217 testing, but to go beyond this with GCMS (gas chromatography–mass spectrometry) testing to ensure the quality of our bunkers is as expected. This has now been confirmed by the lab," said Managing Director Mark VandeVoorde.
"V-TIC also assign a Risk Identification Number to the fuel to rate its overall suitability. Our bunkers have received the lowest risk rating available. Based on this, our customers can buy with confidence knowing they will be getting the same quality of bunker fuel from us they have enjoyed in the past."
But if certain reports Ship & Bunker has received from ship operators is any indication, how some other suppliers are handling the matter is falling short of expectation.
"This week we recorded our third problem from the same supplier. They are now just sending a standard text. It's getting ridiculous," a bunker buyer for a large fleet told Ship & Bunker.
Ship & Bunker has also received reports from suppliers indicating that some buyers are being equally unhelpful.
"We have had cases where the buyer wants to debunker, not because they have had any problems, but just because they lifted in Houston," one local player told Ship & Bunker.
"I think with all the reports that some people think everything here is affected and that's just not even close to being the case. "
