World Bunkering > News > Autumn 2010 > Editor's letter

David Hughes"

This issue of World Bunkering will arrive on desks in the middle of the holiday season. Now, of course, I realise that the shipping and bunker industries don’t just stop for the summer; ships still sail, still take on fuel at all hours of day and night.

Ashore, however, we are entering a spell where empty desks in company offices are commonplace and the pace of work at national shipping administrations and IMO tends to drop to tick-over.

That will all change in September when diaries suddenly become full with shipping events – not least of course the IBIA Convention in Connecticut which is previewed in these pages of World Bunkering.

But while all is relatively quiet, World Bunkering provides an insight into a number of issues that will come into prominence as the northern summer slides away. Recently, there have been many warm words about the future of LNG as the next marine fuel. World Bunkering reports how, in particular, several of the big classification societies have become LNG enthusiasts and we also note some voices of caution.

Being cautious is something that should be second nature to the bunker industry and the feature in World Bunkering on Risk Management looks at how the financial risks involved in bunker supply can be minimised, even in turbulent economic times.

The downturn seems to have done little to dampen the enthusiasm of a number of independents to hit the expansion trail. Again, as our report makes clear, World Bunkering expects more developments later in the year.

The eagerly anticipated revisions to ISO8217 came out in early July. In this World Bunkering issue we look at what the new standards mean for the industry.

Singapore features strongly this time. The World Bunkering review pages look forward to Sibcon, to be held in October, while our interview with Hong Lam’s chief executive Lim Teck Cheng gives an insight into how he developed a small family business into one of the country’s larger suppliers and barge operators. The world’s largest bunkering hub has weathered the economic storm remarkably well but, as we discover, there are significant challenges to be faced.

Not the least of these is intense pressure on margins, something which is also very familiar to Middle Eastern bunker companies. There, unlike Singapore, vanishing profits have also led to some players disappearing from the the market.

I hope you find this issue of World Bunkering a useful source of information. Please remember that you can find current news and bunker prices, and also add your own views, on the World Bunkering free access website www.worldbunkering.com which is updated daily.

David Hughes