Marine fuel sales at the United Arab Emirates’ Fujairah, the third-largest bunkering hub in the world, recovered to a three-month high in August as shipping backlogs cleared after weather disruptions eased.

Heavy rains and flooding had previously impacted bunkering operations at Fujairah in end-July and early August, though demand had picked up towards end-August as operations resumed, according to Fujairah bunker traders.

Total bunker sales volumes at Fujairah, excluding lubricants, rose 9% month-on-month to 723,418 cubic metres (about 692,587 tonnes) in August, based on latest data from the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone published by industry information service S&P Global Commodity Insights.

Combined low-sulphur bunker sales rose 5% month-on-month to 580,870 cubic meters in August, while sales of 380-cst high-sulphur fuel oil were at 142,548 cubic meters, up 27% from July.

Regional supply of high-sulphur fuel oil has loosened up in recent weeks, as seasonal demand for power generation retreated in the Middle East.

The market share of low-sulphur bunker volumes dipped slightly to 80% in August, compared with 83% in July, the data showed.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Jeslyn Lerh; Editing by Devika Syamnath)