Peninsula Sees Red Sea Crisis Boosting Canaries and Med Bunker Demand

by Ship & Bunker News Team
Friday January 19, 2024

Global marine fuel supplier and trading firm Peninsula is expecting to see a boost in sales in the Canary Islands and the Western Mediterranean as a result of ships diverting away from the Red Sea and Suez Canal.

These ports are likely to benefit once extra demand in Africa outpaces local availability, news agency Reuters cited Peninsula CEO John Bassadone as saying on Thursday.

"Ships are diverting away from the Red Sea and re-routing around the coast of South and West Africa – this increased traffic has created huge congestion in bunkering ports around Africa and placed significant pressure on port infrastructure," the report cited Bassadone as saying.

"We are anticipating increased demand in Las Palmas and Western Mediterranean ports as it's likely the African ports will exceed capacity."

Commercial ships operating near Yemen have been coming under attack from the country's Houthi movement over the past two months in a response to the conflict in Gaza.

Several leading shipping companies are now avoiding the region altogether, taking longer routes around Africa rather than using the Suez Canal. This is likely to deliver a significant boost to bunker demand and freight markets while the current situation continues.

Ship & Bunker News Team
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