Asia/Pacific News
VPS: 60 Vessels Have Received Contaminated HSFO in Singapore
At least 60 ships have been identified as having received contaminated HSFO in Singapore, according to global testing firm VPS.
The deliveries were made from two suppliers and 12 delivery barges between mid-February and mid-March, VPS said in an emailed statement on Monday. As much as 140,170 mt of fuel has been contaminated, according to the firm's estimates.
At the end of March VPS warned the recently identified problem of chlorinated hydrocarbons being found in Singapore HSFO samples had the potential to be on the same scale as the Houston contamination crisis of 2018.
But no new vessels have been identified as having suffered serious damage from the contaminated fuel since its March 31 statement, in which it said 14 had been found, VPS said in Monday's statement.
"We have now identified a significant quantity of bunker fuel, 140,170 metric tonnes to be precise, that has been contaminated with chlorinated hydrocarbons," Malcolm Cooper, CEO of VPS, said in the statement.
"This equates to $120 million at current market value.
"We would advise our customers to be very aware that this contaminated fuel remains in the supply chain and could potentially be reused or re-blended for use as a bunker fuel.
"The best mitigating measure to prevent the risk of receiving and using this fuel, is to test at the point of bunkering.
"However, as shown in this case, standard ISO 8217 test methods are not sufficient to detect these contamination events.
"VPS therefore strongly recommends GCMS screening as the most effective method of detecting chemical contaminants in bunker fuel including chlorinated hydrocarbons."
