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A joint venture agreement has been signed in The Netherlands that is aimed towards improving the dependability of the marine fuels sector, ensuring that the quality and quantity of bunkering supplied in the port of Rotterdam can be better guaranteed and making bunkering even more attractive commercially.

The agreement was signed on April 23 by Hendrik Muilerman on behalf of the Netherlands Petroleum Industry Association (VNPI), Johan van der Steen from the Dutch Organisation for the Energy Industry (NOVE), Boudewijn Siemons on behalf of the Association of Independent Tank Storage Companies (Votob) and Hans Smits, CEO of the Port of Rotterdam Authority.

According to Port of Rotterdam Authority, the bunker sector wants to make clear which substances should not be permitted in marine fuels and wishes to "make every effort to prevent such substances from getting into bunker oil".

The sector also aims to achieve greater transparency within the bunker fuel supply chain by entering into further agreements about traceability, the port authority said, adding that sampling systems will be investigated.

As regards the issue of measuring the amount of fuel supplied, Port of Rotterdam Authority said the sector would strive to develop a "reliable, innovative method of determining the quantities that are supplied", citing the use of flow meters as an example.

"Even now, it still happens that quantities supplied - even with large deliveries valued at more than €7 million - are determined in a 'traditional', less precise manner," Port of Rotterdam Authority commented.

Another issue to be highlighted was the need to ensure that bunkering takes place more quickly.

"The largest amounts of bunker oil are supplied to container ships. These ships sail on scheduled services and remain in the ports for increasingly shorter periods. This means that bunkering also has to take place increasingly faster. It is therefore in everyone’s interest for the bunker supply process to run as smoothly as possible," Port of Rotterdam remarked.

Rotterdam is currently the third largest bunker port in the world in terms of supply volumes. Sales of bunker fuel last year decreased by 10.6 percent, or 1.3 million tonnes, to 10.9 million tonnes, down from 12.2 million tonnes in 2011 and below the 11.9 million tonnes sold in 2010.