Peninsula to Deliver 600,000 mt of VLSFO Before 2020

Bunkering operations. Image Credit: Peninsula Petroleum

Peninsula Petroleum says it is on track to deliver more than 600,000 tonnes of IMO2020 grade VLSFO bunkers prior to the January 1, 2020 start date of the new 0.50% sulfur cap on marine fuel.

“To date we have delivered 300,000 tonnes of VLSFO in our physical supply ports of Gibraltar, Algeciras, Barcelona, ARA, Canary Islands, Malta, Panama, US Gulf Coast and Los Angeles," CEO John A. Bassadone said in an industry update today highlighting the supplier's readiness for the new fuel rules.

With quality a key concern of the new VLSFO fuels, Peninsula stressed its recent focus on improving supply chain control with moves such as boosting its storage capabilities to over 400,000 metric tonnes of terminal capacity in Europe and 370,000 metric tonnes across the Americas.

The group also recently acquired its first Panamax vessel to improve flexibility for its product procurement, floating storage and cargo transhipments activities.

In terms of the fuel itself, Alex Lyra, Global Head of Supply & Trading, said his company has "secured the full mix of products and availability in our physical ports from reliable partners in advance of 2020 and beyond."

There are now just 50 days to go before the new sulfur rules come into force, and while it remains to be seen exactly how much disruption this will cause, Peninsula at least has declared itself ready for IMO2020.

"We are optimistic about the challenges and opportunities 2020 brings and our focus of delivering global solutions that add value to our clients remains unchanged," Bassadone concluded.