LR Bunker Tips: Flowmeters

by Chris Bieda, FOBAS Service Delivery, Lloyd’s Register GMT
Tuesday October 24, 2017

Since the start of 2017, a question that often gets directed to us at the FOBAS BQS team is why do I need a Bunker Surveyor to attend when the supplier is using a Flowmeter (either Volumetric or Mass Flow) for custody transfer of bunkers?

The answer very simply is as an independent witness to the procedure. The meter is solely there to record the custody transfer of the purchased fuel.

  • The meter is unable to witness and ensure that the full set of seals are in place.
  • The meter is unable to identify any suspicious pipework. (Barge or Vessel)
  • The meter is unable to identify any tampering.
  • The meter is unable to take a set of fully representative samples for analysis.

The need for a Bunker Surveyor on board a vessel during a Flowmeter delivery is just as important as having a Bunker Surveyor on board during a measured delivery.

Flowmeters are a new technological advance within the bunker industry and their use will continue to spread from port to port.

A flowmeter should be treated as a another useful tool to use in the transfer of bunkers… something that should aid the work of an independent Bunker Surveyor and not something to replace them with.

Only by using the two together can you be full assured that you are only paying for the fuel you have received.

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