Maersk Tankers and Cargill are launching a new joint bunker procurement service both for their own fleets and to serve third party tramp shipping and trading houses.
The joint initiative will launch on 1 April with an aim of initially procuring fuel for the two companies combined fleets and then attracting other customers in the coming months.
The combined fleets have an annual bunker volume of 3.5m tonnes for Maersk’s 220 tankers and Cargill’s chartered in fleet of around 700 vessels.
“As independent bunker consumers with no physical oil activity or bunker assets, there will be no conflicts of interest. We can therefore focus on providing transparency, robust benchmarking, and a modern and digital customer experience,” said Olivier Josse, head of tankers and marine fuel at Cargill Ocean Transportation.
The two companies aim to leverage on scale for better prices and services, and leverage on relationships with key suppliers.
“Tramp shipping companies face challenges today in a bunker market that is becoming increasingly complex. With our new bunker procurement service, we want to make their lives easier,” says Claus Gronborg, chief investment officer at Maersk Tankers.
“Through our scale, they will get access to bunker fuel at competitive prices, while getting an experienced partner that will navigate the bunker market on their behalf.”
Source: Seatrade Maritime
