Global bunker fuel supplier Monjasa delivered more than one million metric tonnes of marine fuel in Singapore in 2024, making it the firm’s largest single supply port by volume.

IMAGE: Two different shipping routes from Singapore to Rotterdam. The shorter one runs via the Suez Canal, the longer around the Cape of Good Hope. ENGINE

Balboa remained its second-largest supply location, followed by Cristóbal on the Atlantic side of the Panama Canal. Combined, the two anchor points reinforce the canal’s status as a vital fuelling corridor for global trade.

In the Middle East, Jebel Ali and Khalifa ports in the UAE remained key markets for Monjasa.

The supplier also reported steady bunker demand at Houston, Cartagena, and Callao in the Americas.

Detour and African bunker boom

The Port of Walvis Bay in Namibia has entered Monjasa’s top ten list for the first time. The Port of Lomé in Togo also retained its position among the company’s busiest supply locations.

Monjasa attributed the rise in activity to continued rerouting of vessels around the Horn of Africa, noting “higher activity levels compared to previous years.”

Another wave of Houthi attacks in the Red Sea has heightened security concerns and dampened hopes of a return to normal transit through the Suez Canal. Major container lines, including Maersk and CMA CGM, continue to reroute vessels around the Cape of Good Hope, signalling that confidence in the region’s stability remains low.

This shift has prompted several suppliers to enter the African bunker market in recent months. Most recently, Aurelio began physical bunkering operations at Dakar and other Senegalese ports. The company plans to start supplying VLSFO and LSMGO by barge within Dakar’s outer port limits by the end of the month.

Bunker Partner launched its first ever physical operation in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. Vitol started physical bunkering in Dakar and offshore Lomé, Togo. Global Fuel Supply deployed its newly chartered bunker barge in Angola’s Luanda.

In total, Monjasa supplied marine fuels at 788 ports globally in 2024. Its operations are supported by a fleet of 35 vessels, evenly split between owned and chartered tonnage.

By Konica Bhatt

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