Algoa Bay Bunkering Restart Date Uncertain After SARS Updates Rules

Algoa Bay was formerly South Africa's largest bunkering location. File Image / Pixabay

Any potential restart of bunkering at Algoa Bay, formerly South Africa's largest bunkering location, remains uncertain despite an update of the rules by the country's tax authority.

The South African Revenue Service updated its protocols on the storage of imported bonded fuels in customs and excise warehouses over the weekend, with the rules expected to come into effect from the end of this week.

Supply at Algoa Bay was all but shut down in mid-September 2023 after SARS detained five vessels including bunker barges earlier in the month.

This halted the bunker operations of TFG Marine and Minerva Bunkering.

This was followed by one of BP's barges at Algoa Bay also being detained later on in September.

SARS wrote to local shipping industry representatives in July 2023 to announce the findings of a longstanding investigation into the Algoa Bay bunker supply market.

The authority's accusation is that marine fuel cargoes have been delivered from other countries into floating storage facilities off Algoa Bay and sold on as bunkers without first having been properly registered and taxed as imports, rather than transshipped product.

It remains unclear whether this accusation was also being levelled at BP.

Any resumption of bunkering at Algoa Bay would need to be a longer-term decision after careful analysis of the new situation, a local source told Ship & Bunker on Tuesday.

"I can't say when activity will resume," the source said.

"These new regulations need to be studied to determine the implications on running a bunkering operation in Algoa Bay."

Bunker demand in South Africa could currently be going through something of a renaissance because of ships avoiding the Red Sea and Suez Canal because of attacks there, but the country is currently not able fully to take advantage of the situation.