Asia/Pacific News
Singapore Bunker Demand Rallies in May
Bunker demand in Singapore, the world's largest marine fuels hub, rallied in May after a weak start to the year.
The city-state's total demand advanced to 4.1 million mt in May, according to preliminary data from the Maritime and Port Authority, the most since December. The total was up by 1.1% from the same month a year earlier and by 10% from April's level.
April's total had been dragged down on a monthly basis by HSFO sales after 80 ships reported damage from buying contaminated HSFO in Singapore in February and March.
VLSFO sales rose by 6.5% on the month to 2.6 million mt, HSFO surged by 13.8% to 1.1 million mt, distillates advanced by 33.2% to 381,600 mt and other fuels sank by 38.4% to 22,600 mt. HSFO's share of the total was 26%, up from 24.2% the same month a year earlier.
The niche LNG bunker market in Singapore continues to grow, after seeing total sales of 50,000 mt last year, but LNG sales are not yet being included in the monthly figures.
Slow Start to 2022
Singapore's sales are rallying after extended weakness in the first four months of the year. The passing of the contamination problem seen in February and March will play a large part in the recovery, as will the tentative reopening of Shanghai after lockdown.
There were 3,168 vessel calls for bunkers in May, 4.7% higher than the level seen a month earlier. That left the average stem size last month at about 1,299 mt, compared with the 12-month average of 1,280 mt.
Bulker Rally
The total gross tonnage visiting Singapore gained 0.5% on the year to 239.4 million mt. This advance was led by the bulker segment, which gained 7.3 million mt. Tanker tonnage calls dropped by 1.4 million mt, while containers were little changed.
The mandatory mass flow meter systems used to measure all bunker deliveries in Singapore come with a +/-0.5% margin of error, a level considered more accurate than traditional measurement systems used at most other ports with the added benefit of all but eliminated volumetric malpractice.
Only licensed companies can supply bunkers in Singapore, and the MPA calculates sales based on the bunker delivery notes of those companies.
