The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore has an approved list of 59 licensed bunker suppliers in its ports. They handle about 42.4 million metric tons of bunkers annually.
The MPA recently uncovered illegal operations of supplying marine fuel without a proper licence by JL Petroleum. JL Petroleum pleaded guilty as charged. They had supplied marine fuel on 14 different occasions in June 2013. It has also come to light that they used Bunker Delivery Notes belonging to another supplier by name Excel Petroleum Enterprises to tide over the legal formalities during deliveries.
This prompted MPA to take action against Excel Petroleum. Their license has been cancelled since January 2014 for their involvement with JP Petroleum. JP Petroleum has been fined under regulation 78(b). The fine amount is undisclosed as yet.
MPA’s regulations:
- All bunker suppliers operating in the Port of Singapore must be licensed by MPA.
- All licensees must adhere strictly to the terms and conditions of the licence.
- Any licensee found to have contravened any terms and conditions will have his licence suspended or cancelled.
- MPA adopts a zero tolerance approach towards bunkering malpractices and will not hesitate to take action against any unlicensed entity operating in the Port of Singapore.
Source: The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA)
