KARACHI – Pakistan’s ship bunker industry is on the verge of closure because of a crippling shortage of bunker fuel at the local ports, Pakistan Today has learnt. Industry sources claim the dearth is attributed to the government’s untimely import of furnace oil.
The acute scarcity of bunker fuel has taken a massive toll on business conducted by bunker industry which has shrunk by 80 percent to only 5,000 metric tonnes (MT) from previous figures of 25,000 MT; a huge slump of 20,000 MT.
“Ships are diverting to other regional ports due to the lack of fuel at local ports,” Pakistan Bunker Association (PBA) General Secretary Asif Zaman Khan said, adding that the shortage was depriving local bunker suppliers of large international orders.
The PBA official said the scarcity has forced some of the smaller players to cut back on costs and start downsizing their staff and adding to the already high unemployment rate in the country. “If this situation persists, more people are liable to lose jobs” he warned.
“Due the shortage and disturbing lack of bunker fuel, the industry is losing business and some of the small bunker companies are now on the verge of closure,” Asif noted. He said the fuel shortage was also depriving the country of a handsome amount of foreign exchange the industry was contributing in the exchequer.
According to the secretary, a ‘severe shortage’ of bunker fuel was also having a direct impact on ship traffic at local ports, forcing the vessels to divert to other regional seaports in the search for fuel.
“The situation is getting worse as the shipping lines are turning to other ports in search of bunker desperately,” he said. He said the bunker traders were also finding it hard to meet enquiries in the spot market because of a shortage of 380 centistoke (cst) and 180 cst quality bunkers at local ports.
“The port’s spot market activities have been restricted… local bunker traders are fearful the situation will worsen in the coming weeks,” the trader said. Asif said that the shortage of two key grades of bunker fuel has assumed alarming proportions. “The unavailability of IFO 380cst is already costing the local bunker industry at least $34 million annually,” he said.
The PBA general secretary said monthly sales in the local market had plunged by almost 70 percent. He demanded that the government, particularly the ministry of petroleum, take immediate steps to ensure availability of the marine fuel oil and to make timely imports of the fuel to meet the shortage of bunker fuel oil and save thousands of jobs in the long-neglected bunker industry.
