November 1st 2023
2nd stage from Vaca Muerta to Litoral Argentina
National Holidays: Monday, November 20th
Fuel – Energy situation in Argentina:
Fuel (light) deliveries appear to be returning to normal. There still are still lineups at gasoline stations by those wanting to load up their tanks of petrol and diesel oil.
Various MR tankers that were waiting at Recalada have been allowed in to discharge at Buenos Aires and Campana.
The YPF distillery in La Plata remains under maintenance stoppage for a further 7-10 days.
It is rumored that the “sudden” availability of fuel is related to the release of USD by the Central Bank to pay for the fuel.
Bunker suppliers comment that deliveries at Zona Comun are not expected to be affected. Partly because VLSFO is a heavy fuel and that is not imported and mainly because demand for VLSFO has dropped dramatically because of the drop in vessels calling due to the drought. The drought has reduced this year’s (2023) grains export volume by 40 per cent.
One comment was that Zona Comun usually trades between 80,000/100,000 tons of VLSFO per month. The figure for October 2023 stands 22,000 tons.
Additionally prices at Zona Comun are now below Santos, when the benchmark was for ZC to be at USD 35.00 over Santos.
2nd stage of the gas pipeline from Vaca Muerta to Litoral Argentina:
The Government has called offers for the second stage of the pipeline from Vaca Muerta to Litoral Argentina.
The first stage was built during the summer and autumn of 2023. That first stage was awarded to Techint and the pipes were manufactured in Brazil and shipped in uncoated condition from Rio de Janeiro to Dock Sud. They were then coated outside Buenos Aires and later carried to the building site. The first stage started in NW Patagonia and finished in Saliqueló (Central Argentina). The pipes were 36 inches in length, 12 meters long and each one weighed in at about 5 tons. Total length of the first stage was 558 km.
The second stage is 484 km in length and the pipes are to be very similar in description.
STS BUNKER AT ZONA COMUN FOR NEXT DAYS:
As always, the STS operation is up to the discretion of the Masters of the vessels involved.
Will keep you posted.
Best regards,
Antares Servicios Maritimos S.A.
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