The Middle East marine bunkering hub of Fujairah said a “flexible approach” will be required in the run-up to the International Maritime Organization’s new sulfur fuel cap, reports Platts.
Flexible approach for what?
As Fujairah has allocated four berths to compliant fuels, it is emphasising for a “flexible approach” to run-up to the IMO Sulphur regulation.
The port’s initial step is dedicating berths 3A, 3B, 3E and 3W to load and discharge compliant fuels, with 0.5% and 0.1% sulfur content, the port’s managing director Mousa Murad said in a letter to all general managers at the port.
Changes to happen soon
This means that berth 3 main will not be available for the “majority of the time,” he wrote. According to the letter, the changes at the port will happen “in due course”.
The changes in the IMO rules, effective January 1, 2020, limit sulfur content in marine fuel to 0.5%, compared with 3.5% currently.
Barges handling 3.5% fuel oil will be allowed on all other wing berths as is the current practice, Murad said in the letter.
“Further changes to the infrastructure and berth configuration may be required as we progress through 2020,” Murad wrote.
Lack of clarity
Leading up to IMO2020, there is a “lack of clarity surrounding market fundamentals such as supply, demand, product availability, pricing, etc., which means a flexible approach to the segregation of products is required.”
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Source: Platts
