World Bunkering > News > Winter 2009 > New projects drive modernisation

Could you tell us something about your company’s background?

Our company was founded in 2001 in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, Sakhalin island, Russia. At the beginning, we were acting as the Russian Far East agent of a few international bunkering companies. At that time we focused on activity in the North-Eastern Pacific, primarily serving the fishing fleet.

What about your current operations?

A couple years ago, we slightly modified our profile. Currently we are working as a regional/international trader. We are able to provide most kinds of bunkering support, oil products trading, onshore fuel storing and delivery service. Based on our skills, experience and partner’s cooperation, we specialise in providing bunkering services in complicated conditions. I mean, any kind of fuel support in remote local regions, with multiphase logistic schemes, under heavy weather conditions. Mostly, our work is managed from our onshore storage facility in Korsakov port.

We are willing to provide MGO bunkering in the port area and offshore strip (Aniva Bay, Sakhalin; Okhotsk sea, Japan sea), as well as MGO and IFO-40 bunkering in open sea. Among our clients are fishing companies, cargo delivery companies and oil and gas research and exploration companies. In order to provide inland fuel support we are involved in diesel fuel delivery for heavy duty vehicles and in bitumen delivery for new road construction works.

Do you have any plans to expand?

Like any growing company, we are trying to be proactive in terms of the future of our business. Our principal goals are integrity and commitment. Based on this, we are on our way toward expanding our bunkering activity outside the Sakhalin region, and to providing full-scale fuel support for the operators of the Sakhalin oil and gas project. Due to these goals, we have been negotiating with one of the major Russian service companies to set up a new joint project concerning the delivery of two brand-new ice-class tankers, fully compliant with IMO requirements, to provide a 365/7/24 bunkering service for the Sakhalin-2 project. The project has to be completed in the next two years.

How do you see the Russian Far East developing?

The prospect for the Far East region is concerned with development of current and future oil and gas projects. These projects are creating the possibility of bunkering crude oil tankers which work with delivery of Sakhalin oil. The Sakhalin-2 project is a big impetus for development. At present these tankers take bunkers at foreign sea ports. And there is no opportunity to take fuel in Sakhalin because of the lack of technical facilities.

What are the main competitive advantages of the region’s suppliers?

Quality, reliability of supply, prompt response, execution of completed delivery, possibility of locally produced fuels (from the Petrosakh local refinery) are the main advantages of Russian suppliers. The local bunkering companies have got huge experience of work in accordance with international HSE standards as a result of cooperating with the project operators. This experience gives a new perspective and helps with the development of new business philosophy.

What are the main challenges? Bureaucracy? Geographical location for attracting bunker-only calls?

The geographical location has both its positive and negative sides. On the negative side is our remoteness from the refineries; on the positive side is the location at the centre of the bunkering activities. Also on the negative side - the monopoly of large-scale oil companies. Probably in the near future the biggest part of the regional market will be engaged with such companies as Rosneft-Bunker and Gazpromneft Marine Bunker. Also, these companies are able to solve the problem of the lack of modern fuel tankers. They could do it with the construction of new tankers using foreign credits. They can solve the problem, because their holding companies act as the customer during the potential bunkering process. Of course, in this case third party companies will be unable to get any part of work.

What difference will the Sakhalin-2 projects make to the bunker market?

The Sakhalin-2 project is the high importance project, because other projects’ operators will follow this one in choosing their bunkering suppliers. At present, there is no bunkering company in the region which has ice-class fuel tankers that meet IMO requirements. That’s why all the projects’ operators have to work with bunkering companies that do not conform to modern requirements.

How much is the current global economic downturn affecting the region’s bunker market.

The economic crisis has touched regional bunkering companies. They have to decrease income at sale volume cost. But in Sakhalin the situation is more prosperous than in neighbouring regions (Vladivostok, Khabarovsk, Nakhodka). Steadiness of payments for fuel is preserved and there are some prospects of increasing the fuel supply due to the development of other new projects.