BP launches Valencia bunkering operation

Adds the Mediterranean's second-largest commercial port to its supply portfolio.

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Updated on 08 Aug 2019 15:13 GMT

BP Marine announced on Thursday that it is adding Valencia, Spain, to its global portfolio of bunker supply ports. The fuel supplier will be operating a dedicated bunkering barge with a 4,000-tonne storage capacity at the Mediterranean port. The vessel is to be used to supply customers with 0.1-percent-sulphur marine gas oil (MGO) and will source product from BP's Castellón Refinery - located approximately 75 kilometres north of Valencia. Commenting on the development, BP Marine posited that the introduction of IMO's 0.5 percent global sulphur limit in 2020 would result in MGO accounting for the majority of future marine fuel usage. The company stressed that the use of MGO "should require no additional investment by customers and should not generally require any new operating procedures". The distillate product could be consumed in the Port of Valencia and in Emission Control Areas (ECAs) with stricter sulphur limits than the global 0.5 percent cap, including Europe. Eddie Gauci, global head of BP marine, remarked: "Fuel incompatibility is one of the main challenges our customers are faced with as the industry is shifting to cleaner fuels. Our early market entry with MARPOL 2020[-]compliant marine fuel demonstrates BP Marine's commitment to the industry and vessel owners to ensure availability with enough lead time to allow for a smooth transition to low[-]sulphur fuel. We believe that an offer of the low[-]sulphur marine gasoil [DMA-specification] variety ... in the region will benefit our customers and the region."