Singapore's January bunker fuel sales rise 7.51% on year to 4.51 mil mt

Singapore — Singapore's bunker fuel sales rose 7.51% on the year to 4.51 million mt in January, data from the Maritime and Port Authority showed Friday.

The rise in demand was largely attributable to transition to cleaner fuels following the IMO 2020 mandate which came into effect January 1, market sources said.

January sales inched up 1.1% from December, led by a surge in marine gasoil demand, MPA data showed.

"Some shipowners were buying marine gasoil because there was no barge avails for low sulfur fuel oil. We did get some as an alternative but it's not something we would do in the long-term," a Singapore-based shipowner said.

Low sulfur MGO sales rose 9.46% on the month to 445,900 mt in January, hitting its highest sales on the year.

Meanwhile, LSFO 180 CST sales in January dropped 44.23% on the month to 211,000 mt. "Inquiries in the last two weeks of January were thin as shippers have bought enough," said a Singapore-based bunker trader.

Looking ahead, demand for bunker fuel is expected to remain subdued amid the coronavirus outbreak in Singapore, coupled with the typical seasonal lull seen in February, sources said.

On February 13, delivered marine fuel 0.5%S bunker in Singapore was trading at a premium of $47.94/mt over the benchmark Singapore Marine Fuel 0.5%S cargoes, S&P Global Platts data showed.

In January, the number of arrivals for bunkering at Singapore decreased 6.22% on the month to 3,591, MPA data showed.

Source: Singapore Maritime and Port Authority