By far the major issue was the low sulfur legislation due to enter force on 1st January 2020. They expressed concern that there would not be enough availability of low sulfur fuel by that date.
The problem would lie with the smaller ports, as the larger ones should be okay, they said. They stressed that large shipping companies will have buying power but it could prove to be very difficult for the smaller tramp shipping companies to source LSFO, especially from the smaller ports.
At the refineries there could be an auction between shipping and other industries for available IFO. There could be potential bankruptcies among shipowners and operators who were unable to lock into future contracts for fuel, Frew said.
There could also be safety issues at the refinery blending stage with the possibility of contaminated fuel being produced thus increasing engine damage and in turn breakdowns. Countries with refineries are being asked to clamp down on the product produced, as there were inefficient refineries operating in the world at present.
Enforcement is key as there will be financial benefits for those cheating the system, they said.
New clauses in standard BIMCO charter contracts are due to be released in November, covering the low sulfur fuel issue.
Other issues were discussed, including ballast water systems, biofouling and hull cleaning, cyber security and others, most of which will be covered in future editions of Tanker Operator Magazine.
It was also revealed that Kaptanoglu CEO, Sadan Kaptanoglu, will takeover from Anastasios Papagiannopoulos as BIMCO president in May of next year.