World Bunkering > News > Winter 2009 > Chairman's Introduction

Chris Fisher

It was good to see so many familiar faces – and some new ones, too – at our recent annual convention in Singapore. Attendance rates, as always, were very high, and it says a great deal about the dedication of the bunkering industry that, even when financial confidence worldwide remains extremely fragile, we are able to attract such healthy numbers of delegates to our yearly meetings.

IBIA is the undisputed number one representative body in the bunker industry, and we are greatly encouraged to see that people continue to want to be part of our extended family. I hope you will agree that the programme in Singapore was both varied and relevant, and that there was plenty of opportunity for discussion and debate.

Over the two days leading up to the main event in Singapore, we ran the advanced IBIA bunker course. This, as its name suggests, is intended for those with some experience of the bunker industry, and is divided into operations and technical modules. The operations module looks in details at factors influencing the physical supply of bunkers, including scheduling, pre-delivery, delivery and post-delivery requirements.

The technical module, meanwhile, deals with a range of subjects, including production, storage, specifications, sampling and analysis. As you know, IBIA believes in maintaining and improving standards throughout our industry, worldwide. That is why we invest a significant amount of time and effort in developing such courses, and it is also why we have been trying to establish some industry-wide professional qualifications for people employed in the bunker industry.

Last year we carried out industry research on the need for qualifications in our industry, albeit on a relatively small population of our members. Recently we have obtained additional feedback from members on a number of related issues, including whether you believe that a professional bunkering qualification would help raise industry standards, and whether you would support those wishing to gain such a qualification. The response has been very positive and the survey findings were presented at the convention in Singapore.

While IBIA itself is not looking to move further into the training sector, the fact is that many of our members have shown an interest in establishing an IBIA qualification. Clearly, IBIA cannot become involved in the cost of attending third-party training events, but our aim is to keep the cost of the examination and qualification process as low as possible by providing examination facilities in as many locations around the world as possible. This would keep student travel costs down. The examination fee should be modest; sufficient to cover venue costs, invigilation and certification. Where possible we would endeavour to minimise costs by registering a number of students to sit the examination at the same time.

Education is vital. Specifically, I believe that, if the buyer is well-trained and qualified, a large proportion of problems could be avoided.

Too many owners are leaving their purchase functions to individual operators who never have time to attend courses or conferences. Traders, brokers and suppliers do make up most of the delegates on training courses, but more education is needed. Purchasers and suppliers need to be aware of the benefits that well-informed staff can give to their company. Qualifications would be a great way to enhance both IBIA and the bunkering industry and would allow people in the industry to develop and to gain personal satisfaction. Quality and safety must at all times be our watchwords in the bunker industry, and in this regard I would like to remind members that the draft of the fourth edition of ISO8217 is currently out for voting, which has to be completed by 17 December this year.

Thereafter, the final draft international standard version will be prepared, with a further two months of balloting for editorial/ non-technical changes. It is expected that by June 2010 the whole balloting process will be closed and the standard will be ready for publishing. Indeed, a particular driver behind the development of this fourth edition was a specific request by IMO to have it ready by the implementation date of the revised MARPOL Annex VI – 1 July 2010. Our industry has been working with the ISO8217 standard for marine fuels since November 2005. It is much more than a table of parameters. Among other things, it precludes the inclusion in the fuel of any added substance or chemical waste which jeopardises the safety of the ship or adversely affects the performance of the machinery, which is harmful to personnel or contributes overall to additional air pollution.

The draft fourth edition will reflect changes in, among others things, technology and environmental legislation. It will, for example, include suggested hydrogen sulphide limits and acid numbers for both residual and distillate marine fuels. Sulphur limit values will no longer be included in the new ISO8217 standard. New parameters introduced for residual marine fuels will include a Calculated Carbon Aromaticity Index (CCAI) as an indicator of ignition delay, and a limit on sodium content.The world is changing and, with it, the demands on our industry. IBIA prides itself on the quality of its membership and on its ability not only to observe all relevant legislation, but to recognise the fact that such legislation merely sets out standards which are minimum, rather than optimum, in nature.

Chris Fisher