Vessel rerouting will add 1% to global bunker demand — Xeneta

Vessel diversions via the Cape of Good Hope will mean more fuel consumed, Xeneta chief analyst Peter Sand tells ENGINE.

PHOTO: Aerial view of Durban port landscape. Getty Images

Sand says the uptick will translate to “roughly 1% of added global demand, most of it supplied in Singapore, the world's largest bunkering hub”.

He explains that the data is based on ships’ bunker consumption, the number of vessels in service and the number of container ships passing via the Suez Canal, among other factors. 

All these aspects together support an estimate of 2 million mt/year of extra fuel needed for container ships, Sand told ENGINE. 

Since last week, shipping companies have been diverting vessels via the longer Cape of Good Hope route to avoid attacks by the Houthi militia in the Red Sea. 

Consequently, bunker demand has gone up in ports in southern Africa and the Canary Islands this week. 

There are more bunker enquiries for Las Palmas and Tenerife now, a trader has confirmed. 

Similarly, suppliers in South Africa's Durban and Richards Bay, and in Mozambique's Maputo and Nacala have told ENGINE they have seen an uptick in demand this week.

By Manjula Nair

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