BPCL eyes doubling bunkering sales volume to 14 tmt with terminal upgrade

BPCL has upgraded its bunkering facility with five jetties that can now pump the oil into ships from the pipelines at the Marine Oil Terminal on the Butcher Island, off the east coast of the city.

The country's second largest oil marketing firm Bharat Petroleum has upgraded its bunkering facility with five jetties that can now pump the oil into ships from the pipelines at the Marine Oil Terminal on the Butcher Island, off the east coast of the city.

BPCL is the largest supplier of bunkering oil with around 60 per cent of the volume at JNPT, Mumbai Port and the two other harbours nearby the city consuming around 400thousand metric tonne(tmt) annually.

And the sell-off bound national oil marketer expects to double its annual sales to 14 tmt from 7 tmt now after the updrade and complete mechanisaiton of the oil filling facilities now, S Jena, executive director, industrial & commercial at BPCL told PTI.

On average, as many as 5,000 vessels berth at Mumbai, JNPT and the adjoining Digi and Dharamtarports annually, creating a bunkering business of close to 400tmt of VLSFO.

The upgraded facility on the Jawahar Dweep, earlier known as the Butcher Island, will be used bunkering very low sulphur oil (VLFSO)that ships useto power their motors.

The upgrade includes construction of the underwater pipelineand connecting the pipeline to the terminal at BPCL's Mumbai refinery, was completed on timedespite the lockdown challenges and and heavymonsoons in Mumbai, BPCL said on Monday.

Pipeline bunkering at four of the five jetties are already on while the fifth jetty is under constructionnow.

Before this, bunkering was carried out first by filling barges that required unloading of around 40 filled tankerlorries. With the upgrade, bunkers can now be filled by pumping, thus reducing time to 4hours from two days earlier.

The Jawahar Dweepalso houses the marine oil terminal of the Mumbai Port.

BPCL has tankage capacity of 16 thousand kilos, at the terminal which is connected to its Mumbai refinery through subsea pipelines.

Jenasaid on an average, 5000 vessels berth at Mumbai, JNPT and adjoining Digi and Dharamtarports in a year, creating a bunkering business of close to 400tmt of VLSFO.

The pandemic has massively reduced the bunkering business to around 120 tmtso fat this year and BPCL having a share of 60per cent of the annual demand.

BPCL also has bunkering facilities in Kochi where it sells 120tmtof marine fuels annually.