Americas News
Panama Posts Improved Monthly Bunker Sales
The Panama Maritime Authority (AMP) has reported October saw both a year-on-year, and month-on-month improvement in its bunker sales.
The latest data, which was for the first time reported in metric tonnes (mt) compared to previous reports which were stated in barrels, indicated October's total sales volume was 323,770 mt.
This compares with 274,373 mt for October 2014, and 300,066 mt sold during the previous month - an amount Ship & Bunker previously estimated at 292,000 mt based on the stated sales of 2,123,376.23 barrels.
The October result means that Panama has recorded a monthly total of more than 300,000 mt for seven out of the first 10 months of the year, a feat achieved only twice during the whole of last year, and three times in 2013.
October's sales comprised of 301,100 mt of fuel oil bunkers and 22,670 mt of distillate product.
252,322 mt of the October total (of which 235,165 mt was fuel oil, 17,157 mt was distillate) was sold on the Pacific coast, and 71,448 mt (of which 65,935 mt was fuel oil, 5,513 mt was distillate) was sold on the Atlantic coast.
Last week Ship & Bunker reported that, after much vacillating over the matter, the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) said that work to fix cracked locks will now delay the opening of the Panama Canal expansion, with June set as the likely new inauguration date.
