Commercial Issues
The bankruptcy of OW Bunker has resulted in an ongoing and complicated legal tussle over competing claims for fuel payments. Lesley Bankes-Hughes talks to KPI Bridge Oil’s CEO, Carsten Ladekjær, about the key issue of mortgaged invoices in bunker transactions
The contentious issue of competing claims for payment continues to be vigorously debated as the OW Bunker bankruptcy process makes slow progress. Steve Simms of Simms Showers suggests such arguments could be avoided if parties to a bunker transaction work together
Fuel procurement is an increasingly complex process, and its challenges are driving changes in the traditional bunker supply business model. Thomas Roller, MD of Bomin Bunker Holding GmbH, explains.
Company Focus: Peninsula Petroleum
Peninsula Petroleum has grown be one of the largest and most well-known bunker companies. In this profile of the business, Llewellyn Bankes-Hughes charts the course of its development.
Shipping Outlook
Shipping’s recovery continues to stall and the recent wave of ‘new’ investors in the sector may be feeling less bullish about potential returns. James Walters of Gray Page presents a sombre outlook for 2016.
Energy Outlook
The lifting of the 40-year ban on US crude oil exports is part of a larger movement, the American Energy Renaissance. Stephen L Caldwell considers the impact of relaxing energy export controls against a background of volatile global economics.
LNG
With oil prices still on the slide, Lesley Bankes-Hughes considers how the initiatives developed under the LNG Masterplan can move forward.
While low oil prices may have slowed the momentum for a switch to LNG-fuelled shipping, Pace Ralli of Clean Marine Energy, in his overview of the North American market, says the underlying case for gas remains strong and credible.
The use of marine LNG is gaining traction in specific maritime transportation sectors, such as short sea shipping, but, as Konstantinos Fakiolas explains, Deltamarin is also working on design and feasibility studies for larger ship types.
Technology
As Roger Strevens moves on from his position as Chairman of the Trident Alliance, he talks to Rhys Berry about its challenges and achievements in ensuring that the issue of enforcement of sulphur emission regulations remains high on shipping’s agenda.
Biofuels
Michael Schaap of GoodFuels Marine looks at the potential for ‘drop-in’ biofuels in the marine fuels market.
Alternative Fuels
Rhys Berry spoke to Vertex Energy CEO Ben Cowart about the company’s ambitions to develop the profile of its vacuum gasoil in the marine fuels market Ecoslops sustainably treats oil residues from shipping, transforming them into marine fuels.
Rhys Berry talked to CEO Vincent Favier about the genesis of this new product offering.
ECA Compliance
UAV technology is increasingly being used for emissions monitoring but, as Rhys Berry discusses, work still remains to be done on the creation of a legal infrastructure.
Fuel Issues
The draft version of the sixth edition of ISO 8217 is currently being circulated, and voting on the revised specification will end in early April. Nigel Draffin reviews the key changes in the draft.
ISO 8217 is a commercial specification to be used when buying fuel but, as Charlotte Røjgaard of Bureau Veritas-VeriFuel highlights, the operational conditions onboard a vessel can challenge the notion of an ‘on-spec’ fuel.
Lubricants
With a new blending plant in Singapore now fully on stream, Total Lubmarine has its sights set on the burgeoning Asia-Pacific market.
Robert Chapman of Intertek outlines how laboratory tests can play a critical role in incident diagnosis and preventative monitoring.
