Owners of very large crude carriers are avoiding the Suez Canal and traveling to western destinations from the Middle East by the Cape of Good Hope in an effort to reduce operating costs.
Owners of very large crude carriers are avoiding the Suez Canal and traveling to western destinations from the Middle East by the Cape of Good Hope in an effort to reduce operating costs.
Last year"s slump in oil prices and the recent drop in charter rates for VLCCs is behind owners" decision to switch voyage routes.
Data from Lloyd"s MIU"s Apex service showed that just three VLCCs went through the Suez Canal partially laden with Middle East crude last month, compared with 18 in the same month last year and 29 in July 2008.
?It is for purely economic reasons,? said Apex team leader Marie Bates. ?The combination of low oil prices and the decline in charter rates means owners are looking at their costs. Owners are operating below their break-even levels because of the low charter rates. To compensate they are working to reduce voyage costs.?
Gibson head of research Steve Christy said the longer route would be good for tanker owners, adding that ?it helps at the margin to raise demand?.
The increase in tonne-miles travelled by the VLCC fleet would tighten the supply of vessels in the Middle East, he said.
When the oil price was high there is pressure on owners to transport crude as rapidly as possible from the Middle East to European and North American terminals.
VLCCs will sail up the Red Sea and partially unload crude at Ain Sukna, so the oil can be piped along the Suez-Mediterranean pipeline.
Lloyd"s MIU consultant Claire Wright said the lightered VLCCs would go through the Suez Canal and reload the cargo at Sidi Kerir, west of Alexandria, to continue on their journey.
?Owners are avoiding paying Suez Canal dues, although there are outside influences from the threat of piracy, but this is a lower consideration than the economic reasons,? Ms Bates said.
According to Apex data, 26 VLCCs in December 2008 travelled around the Cape of Good Hope, while only two travelled partially laden through the Suez Canal.
Last month up to 42m barrels of crude went around South Africa compared with 6m barrels going through the Gulf of Suez.
The number of VLCCs transporting Middle East crude to western destinations fell by more than 30% year-on-year in January, reflecting lower demand for oil in the US.
Crude shipment volumes to North America and Europe dropped off in November 2008 as the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries reduced petroleum export levels.
Opec production was 28.6m barrels per day in January, down almost 3m bpd year-on-year.
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