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Rosneft Marine UK Ltd. and RN-Bunker LLC - subsidiaries of Russian state-owned oil company OJSC Rosneft - have jointly launched their first bunker delivery tanker to service the Black Sea port of Tuapse in Russia.

Built in 2007, the RN Taurus is a 3569 deadweight tonne (dwt) state-of-the-art bunker tanker. The vessel has pumps in each of its cargo tanks and is capable of delivering 150 cubic metres (m3) of bunker fuel an hour. It has two controllable-pitch propellers and a bow thruster with an integrated automated control system.

RN Taurus is a time-charter agreement with Rosnefteflot, a joint venture between Rosneft and Sovcomflot. The vessel is part of Rosnefteflot's strategy to develop modern, environmentally friendly bunker tankers for use in Russian ports while replacing aging bunker tankers from the Soviet era. The Russian-flagged tanker is specially designed to prevent oil spills.

Andrei Tuchnin, Director of RN-Bunker, said: “Rosneft is committed to improving service to our customers by continuing to introduce modern and up-to-date vessels and technologies. RN Taurus will ensure that our customers receive reliable and efficient delivery while we play our part in helping protect the environment that we operate within.”

A second bunker tanker, the RN Magelan, has been delivered to the port of Murmansk, with more new vessels expected in the ports of St. Petersburg and Arkhangelsk over the next few months. The company says it is also looking to introduce a 6000 dwt tanker to meet the growing demand for bunkers in ports in the Far East.

Vladimir Brezhnev, Director of Rosneft Marine UK, said: “The introduction of our own bunker tankers will help us better control the quality of fuel we deliver to our customers through our integrated supply chain. We are continuing to develop our physical assets to meet growing customer demand in ports like Tuapse which is Russia's second largest Black Sea port.”

Rosneft began developing its bunkering business in late 2007 with the establishment of RN-Bunker, which has continued to experienced steady growth in volumes.

In 2010, Rosneft sold a record 2 million metric tonnes - a 70 percent increase from 2009. Rosneft Marine UK was established in 2010 to support Rosneft's international marine fuel business.