Asia/Pacific News
Panoil Petroleum To Lose Singapore Bunker Supplier Licence
The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) today said that it will not be renewing the bunker supplier licence of Panoil Petroleum Pte Ltd. (Panoil Petroleum) when it expires on August 31, 2017.
The move comes after MPA earlier this month revoked Panoil Petroleum's bunker craft operator licence, which was preceded by the suspension in May of the harbour craft licences of five bunker tankers operated by the company due to irregularities with piping fixtures associated with its mass flow meter (MFM) setup.
"Panoil Petroleum Pte Ltd made unauthorised alterations on the pipelines of their bunker tankers and has accumulated demerit points for non-compliances to the bunkering procedures," MPA explained, adding that the company will no longer be allowed to operate as a bunker supplier and bunker craft operator in the Port of Singapore.
MPA also issued a reminder to all licensed bunker suppliers and bunker craft operators to adhere strictly to the terms and conditions of their bunker licences.
"MPA will take firm action against any licensee who has acted in contravention of their licences," said the authority.
For the past two years Panoil Petroleum has ranked at number 10 on MPA's list of top suppliers by volume in the world's biggest bunkering port.
Separately today, MPA said top 3 ranked bunker supplier Universal Energy Pte Ltd (Universal Energy) would also lose its bunker supplier licence and bunker craft operator licence when they expire on August 31, 2017.
"With the demerit points accumulated, Panoil Petroleum Pte Ltd and Universal Energy Pte Ltd have failed to be accredited under the Accreditation Scheme for Bunker Suppliers. This is a key requirement for the renewal of bunker licences under the terms and conditions of the licences," said MPA.
This is not the first time MPA has taken notable action against the port's biggest suppliers.
In 2013 MPA revoked the bunker supplier and bunker craft operator licence of the now-bankrupt Tankoil Marine Services Pte Ltd (Tankoil), the company infamously implicated in an alleged $125 million fraud by Singapore-based trader Dynamic Oil Trading (DOT) that is widely believed to have been a key factor in the collapse of former bunker industry giant OW Bunker.
At the time Tankoil was ranked as Singapore's sixth biggest supplier by volume.
