Aegean Marine Inks Bunker Supply Deal With Sinopec Unit
April 10 2012 - 2:30AM
Dow Jones News
Marine fuel supplier Aegean Marine Petroleum Network Inc. said
Tuesday that it has signed a preliminary agreement with China
Changjiang Bunker (Sinopec) Co. to provide bunker supplies to each
other's customers in markets worldwide.
"We are extending our global reach to mainland China, enabling
Aegean to establish an initial footprint in some of the world's
largest ports," Dimitris Melisanidis, head of corporate development
at Aegean, said.
Under the agreement, to be effective in the second quarter,
Aegean will supply bunker fuel oil to China Changjiang's customers
in 19 countries throughout North America, South America, Central
America, Europe, Africa and the Middle East, Aegean said in a
statement.
China Changjiang, one of the few licensed bonded bunker
suppliers in China, will cater to bunker demand of Aegean customers
at Chinese ports, including all Changjiang River ports and coastal
ports of Nanjing, Zhenjiang, Yangzhou, Taizhou, Changzhou,
Jiangyin, Nantong, Changshu, Zhangjiagang, Taiccang, Shanghai
[excluding Yangshan], Ningbo, Tianjin, Dalian and Qingdao, which is
scheduled to open by the end of 2012.
Aegean will now be able to enter the rapidly-growing Chinese
marine fuel market, which caters to some of the busiest ports in
the world and was until a few years ago monopolized by state-run
Chimbusco.
Chimbusco is still the top bunker seller in the country, where
bonded bunker sales often reach 1.20 million metric tons a
month.
Chinese bunker players have been expanding their own supply
network globally. One of the most prominent among them, Brightoil
Petroleum, emerged as the second-largest marine fuel supplier in
Singapore, the world's largest bunkering port.
"[Aegean's] bunkering network throughout the world provides a
good choice for us to offer integrated marine fuel services to
customers outside the Chinese market," Jinghan Yao, a board member
and General Manager at China Changjiang, said.
-By Gurdeep Singh, Dow Jones Newswires; 65-6415 4064;
gurdeep.singh@dowjones.com