World News
A Top 10 Singapore Supplier Has Bunker Tankers Suspended Over Mass Flow Meter Irregularities
The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) Tuesday said it has suspended the harbour craft licences of five bunker tankers operated by top 10 bunker supplier Panoil Petroleum Pte Ltd (Panoil) due to irregularities with piping fixtures associated with its mass flow meter (MFM) setup.
"MPA conducts regular spot checks on bunker tankers. During one of our checks, we found irregularities with the piping fixtures of five bunker tankers," MPA said in a statement released to local media.
"All five bunker tankers were operated by Panoil Petroleum. Investigations are currently being carried out and the harbour craft licences of these bunker tankers have been temporarily suspended. During suspension, these bunker tankers will not be allowed to conduct any bunker deliveries, conduct ship-to-ship operations or leave the port of Singapore."
Panoil's website indicates it operates a fleet of 11 vessels, although the names of the suspended bunkering vessels has not yet been revealed.
For the past two years the supplier has ranked at number 10 on MPA's list of top suppliers by volume in the world's biggest bunkering port.
The use of MFMs for MFO bunkering has been in force in Singapore since January 1, 2017, the first and currently only port to mandate such a requirement, having been introduced as part of efforts to crack down on volumetric-based bunker fraud.
Key Bunker Prices More
| VLSFO | MGO | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $/mt | +/- | $/mt | +/- | |
| Singapore | 565.50 | 6.00 | 661.50 | 4.00 |
| Rotterdam | 510.00 | 2.00 | 661.00 | 2.00 |
| Houston | 548.00 | 2.50 | 666.50 | 0.50 |
| Fujairah | 555.50 | 5.00 | 746.00 | 2.50 |
| Global 20 Ports Average | 582.50 | 1.50 | 753.00 | 1.50 |
| Global 4 Ports Average | 544.50 | 3.00 | 683.50 | 1.00 |
| Global Average Bunker Price | 631.00 | 2.50 | 803.50 | 2.00 |
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