RE: Low sulpher25 Jul 2018 09:35
This relates more to Marine engines and shipping.
The switchover to low sulphur diesel is part of meeting emissions target for shipping
A ship takes bunkers as fuel. This is primarily Heavy Diesel Oil
Not particularly clean or light oil. In some instances it can be like a runny treacle.
The oil is then 'cleaned' on board before using in the Main Diesel Engines
To obtain low sulphur oils, as per the emissions requirement isnt just a case of pouring our oil into a ships bunker tank. It needs to be further refined in a refinery to meet the spec.
What may bump up the price is lack of refining ability.
However, ship owners like to make money and so theres no way that they will allow their vessels to run out of fuel, so many are fitting additonal removal equipment to their vessels purifiers in order to ensure availability of compliant fuel.
Our oil, is a good quality light oil. It will attract a premium over Brent crude as it is.
What will also impact on our oil price is our ability to deliver parcels of oil to waiting tankers on time and on spec.
This has in my experience attracted an increase of Brent+5%
As reliability and quality are crucial in ensuring the tanker companies meet the needs of the refineries they service.
For instance, Rotterdam will pay a premium for light North Sea crude as its invaluable in order to crack other heavier, middle eastern crudes. They need the lighter stuff when they need it. Delays cost money. Quality issues cost money. So they will pay a premium to obtain a reliable supply.
Whethetnwe achieve that premium ourselves will come down to operational performance and uptime when on station, but theres no reason that we cant