Sabah Ports appoints firm as official bunker provider By Jenne Lajiun
KOTA KINABALU: Sabah Ports Sdn Bhd (SPSB) yesterday entered into a business collaboration with Minyak V.W. Enterprise Sdn Bhd (MYW) for the supply of diesel and bunkering services within Kota Kinabalu limits.
The proposal by SPSB to appoint MVW as the official bunker provider within the Kota Kinabalu boundaries was endorsed by Sabah Ports Authority (SPA) early this month.
Upon the commencement of the operation, SPA will enforce the closure of private jetties offering duplicate services within the stipulated boundary.
A 500 tonne barge named the ‘Pulau Pelangi’ shall serve as a floating station for refuelling and will be operational on a 24-hour basis inclusive of weekends and public holidays for vessels to receive bunkering fuel.
Stationed at Sepanggar waters, the barge has the capacity to hold 500,000 litres of diesel at one loading.
Operations are expected to start by April.
Under the contract, the provisional period will see MVW assume all primary operations whereas sales and marketing of fuel from Pulau Pelangi shall be jointly coordinated with SPSB.
According to the conditions set by SPA, both parties will ensure a safe environment for bunkering and no illegal transactions to take place on the facility.
SPSB managing director Ng Kiat Min said on a moderate scale, it was projected that the local shipping industry consumes between two and three million litres of bunker fuel monthly.
Under this collaboration, shipping lines and vessels are assured a steady supply of quality bunker fuel at competitive pricing, monitored by the port operator, she said.
She added that the profit derived from the cooperation was marginal for the ports.
“Nevertheless, we see it as being a value-add to the logistics supply chain. It is important to SPSB to ensure a systematic and uninterrupted flow of bunker is in place for the benefit of our port users by appointing MVW,¨ she said.
The contract signing ceremony was held at Sepanggar Bay in tandem with the launching of the ‘Pulau Pelangi’ barge.
SPSB was represented by its chief operating officer Sahid Nawab Khan while MVW was represented by its sales and marketing director Jeff Lu.