More vessels arriving to bunker contributed to push Panama’s total bunker sales up by 23% in October.

Changes in Panama bunker fuel sales from September to October:

• Total sales up 97,000 mt to 525,000 mt
• HSFO sales up 40,000 mt to 157,000 mt
• VLSFO sales up 49,000 mt to 316,000 mt
• LSMGO sales up 421 mt to 38,000 mt
• 0.50% MGO sales up 8,000 mt to 13,000 mt

Total bunker sales in October reached their highest level since August 2019. The number of ships bunkering in Panama’s ports rose by a massive 50 on the month, to 651 in October. This was the highest figure since March last year. The average stem size was roughly 806 mt in October, up by 94 mt from 712 mt in September, according to preliminary figures from the Panama Maritime Authority.

In October, HSFO sales increased by 34% and were at their highest since IMO's 0.5% sulphur cap came into force in 2020.

Four barges were taken offline in Panama, bringing the total count to 31 barges in October.

Bunker-only calls rose by 2%, or 15 calls, compared to October last year. HSFO sales rose by a massive 67% on a year-on-year basis.

VLSFO continued to be the most sought-after product, accounting for 61% of the total bunker sales in Panama in the first 10 months of this year. HSFO sales represented 29% of the total and combined MGO sales at 10%.

Last month, demand for VLSFO and LSMGO was strong in Panama’s ports of Balboa and Cristobal. Product availability was also normal, and most suppliers were able to supply both fuel grades with 3-5 days lead time.

By Debarati Bhattacharjee

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