World News
Malaysian Port to be Euronav's Bunker Base East-of-Suez
Belgian tanker operator Euronav has selected the port of Linggi in Malaysia as its preferred destination for ships on East-of-Suez routes to bunker low sulfur fuel oil.
The tanker company has signed a services agreement with the port which, in addition to bunkers, covers crew and provisions.
"Linggi has a massive advantage, (being) right next to one of the busiest shipping lanes with deep waters to accommodate large ships," Alex Staring, chief operating officer at Euronav, was quoted saying by Reuters on the sidelines of the signing ceremony.
"And there is no congestion, offering the flexibility to anchor immediately," Starling added.
According to the report, Euronav has a very large crude carrier anchored in the area working as floating storage with 420,000 metric tonnes of fuel oil onboard which is sufficient volume to cover nine months' bunker demand from its ships.
Malaysian transport minister Anthony Loke Siew Fook was quoted at the event as saying that the deal meets "our vision to fully utilise our advantages to develop our bunkering industry".
The Malaysia bunkering sector has long been overshadowed by neighbouring Singapore which, with annual bunker sales of around 50 million metric tonnes, is the world's biggest bunkering market.