Asia/Pacific News
Singapore: MPA Suspends Southernpec's Bunker Supplier Licence
The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) today said it has temporarily suspended the bunker supplier licence of Southernpec (Singapore) Pte Ltd (Southernpec).
The move is effective April 25, 2019 and in its official statement on the matter, MPA said the suspension arose from "an enforcement check" on a bunker tanker operated by the supplier.
While MPA's official statement did not go into further detail on Southernpec's infringement, global marine surveying organization Petro Inspect told Ship & Bunker the suspension resulted from a suspected attempt to use magnets to influence mass flow meter (MFM) readings.
"We understand the investigation into possible use of magnets to influence MFM readings had been taking place since last week, and that this has now resulted in today's suspension," Petro Inspect founder Kaivan H. Chinoy told Ship & Bunker.
While there has been talk in the market for some time as to whether it is even possible for a magnet-based attack to disrupt MFM meter readings, last month Petro Inspect was the first to bring evidence of attempts to leverage such a malpractice to public attention.
Southernpec was ranked as Singapore's 30th largest supplier by volume for 2018.
Read More: Evidence Emerges of Attempts to Use Magnets to Influence MFM Bunker Volume Readings
