Asia (Commonwealth Union)_Fuel sales in Singapore, one of the busiest ports in the world, are rising as a result of the Red Sea shipping crisis, as per a Bloomberg report on Thursday.
Sales volumes increased by 12 per cent in January, compared to the same month last year according to data from the port authority. As the unrest in the Red Sea region causes ships to rush to refuel at the Asian hub, this is the second consecutive month of significant increases.
Simon Neo, executive director of ship-refueling consultancy SDE International Pte stated, “Demand in Singapore has increased as it is almost the last stop before heading to the Indian Ocean.” Additional ports like Sri Lanka and Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates might also be options for rerouted vessels, he added.
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The Houthi group has, in recent months, disrupted global maritime trade by targeting merchant vessels off their coasts as a protest against the unlawful Israeli war on Gaza. The death toll currently reached above 25,000 Palestinians, almost 70% of whom are women and children.
The attacks on vessels have resulted in an intervention from the US, and the UK Ship-owners thus choose the safer route around the Cape of Good Hope over the Suez Canal.
The lengthier trips and the decision by some ships to increase sailing speeds have increased the bunker fuel consumption which is causing them to refuel at less common locations like Durban and Walvis Bay as well as at important hubs like Singapore.
“Overall, demand for bunkering should increase due to the longer distances to be covered,” Fotios Katsoulas, lead analyst for tanker shipping and alternative fuels for S&P Global Commodity Insights. Estimates suggest
“This could add up to 5 per cent, if more ships avoid the Red Sea and some of them speed up to minimise the duration of the longer voyages,” he added.
The Maritime & Port Authority reports that total sales of marine fuel in Singapore increased to 4.9 million tons in January, a gain of roughly 12 per cent, reaching 5.1 million tons in December, which is a record monthly volume since 1995.
The most widely used grade of marine fuel, low-sulfur, saw prices soar to $671 per ton in January in Singapore, up roughly by 10 % from the end of the previous year, according to data from the marine fuel procurement and analytics platform Clearlynx. In contrast, Brent crude saw a 6 per cent increase that same month.
