Bunkering refers to the process of supplying fuels to ships for their own use. It includes sales for the fuelling of commercial or private boats, such as pleasure crafts and ocean-going vessels, including vessels operated by oil companies.
Upon knowing a ship’s daily fuel consumption and voyage plan, the quantity of fuel required can be calculated and compared with the available bunker tank capacity. A requisition can then be placed to Petrojam Limited by the relevant ship personnel, after which the requisition will be processed and evaluated regarding the quality and quantity of fuel to be supplied for the particular ship.
Petrojam Limited benefits from the strategic location of Jamaica with respect to international shipping lanes, the Panama Canal, the US Gulf Coast, the US East Coast as well as its position as a major tourist destination in the Caribbean. In addition, Jamaica also holds a strong position with respect to the movement of container ships between the US, South America, Central America and the Panama Canal.
The products sold by Petrojam Limited as bunker fuels are:
- Marine Gas Oil (MGO)
- Low Sulphur Diesel Oil (LSD)
- Very Low Sulphur Fuel Oil (VLS-HFO)
- Ultra Low Sulphur Diesel Oil (ULSD)
- Intermediate Fuel Oil (IFO) of various grades: IFO 30 – IFO 380
These bunker fuels have various specifications. Petrojam Limited ensures that the quality of the products is in keeping with international marine fuels specifications. All products supplied in Petrojam Limited’s bunkering stations meet ISO 8217:2005 standards and comply with MARPOL 73/78, Annex VI. The ISO 8217:2005 standard covers the product specifications of marine fuels and MARPOL 73/78, Annex VI covers the regulations for the prevention of air pollution from ships. When bunkered oil does not meet certain specifications, it may cause air pollution.
Planning by shipping personnel is done for the delivery of bunker at a particular port where the oil is available at a comparatively lesser cost. As such, Petrojam Limited’s bunker fuels are priced based on the company’s Marketing Unit’s Bunker Sales Pricing Strategy which is based on competitive pricing – that is, setting a price in comparison with the competition. These price indications are submitted to the Ship & Bunker website http://shipandbunker.com/prices for publication and are shown daily on that site along with those of other Caribbean & Latin American ports.
Marine operations are managed and coordinated by Petrojam’s logistics team.
