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Aegean Marine Petroleum Network Inc. has announced that it will launch a physical supply operation on the Kiel Canal in January.

The new service is to be managed by Aegean's German subsidiary OBAST Bunkering & Trading GmbH (Rostock) in partnership with local tank farm operator Unabhangige Tanklogistik GmbH (UTG).

The new station is located directly on the Baltic Sea entrance to the Kiel Canal - strategically positioned to supply ships transitting the canal and working in the wider regional market.

Aegean's storage capacity of 13,000 cubic metres represents the entirety of UTG's available tankage for marine fuels.

The bunker firm says it will be offering a full range of MARPOL-compliant fuel grades in Kiel, including RMG 380, ULSFO RMD 80 and DMA marine gas oil. All deliveries will be made ex-pipe from the installation.

"The Kiel facility represents the Aegean Group's third storage location in Germany alongside the exclusive use of tanks in Nordenham on the River Weser and with Vopak in Hamburg," said Jonathan Mcilroy, President of Aegean Marine Petroleum Network Inc.

"The addition of Kiel operations enhances our flexibility throughout the German and Southern Scandinavian Baltic Sea ports. It also emphasises Aegean's commitment and ability to innovate and expand the physical supply network globally," he added.

As Bunker Index previously reported, Aegean launched its Rostock-based bunker supply operation in January.

Mcilroy had stated last month, during the release of the company's financial results for the third quarter, that Aegean expected to launch 'at least one' new bunker supply service in the first half of 2018. It followed comments made by the firm in October that it was in "advanced stages of development" with "a number" of physical supply projects in new locations.

OBAST, a physical bunker supplier and oil cargo trader, and Aegean Bunkering Germany GmbH serve all locations along the German Baltic coast, including the key ports of Hamburg, Bremerhaven, Bremen, Wilhelmshaven, Emden, Brunsbuttel, Kiel, Rostock, Wismar, Stralsund, Travemunde, Stade and Brake.

Bunker enquiries can be made by contacting Aegean's OBAST office on +49 381 40 31 23 85 or info@obast.de.