The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) announced it has temporarily suspended Southernpec’s bunker craft operator licence with effect from 25 April 2019, until further notice.
The announcement came after an enforcement check on a bunker tanker operated by the company.
Sources say the MPA investigated the operator for using a magnet to tamper with the Mass Flow Meter (MFM) of its bunker tanker, during a bunkering operation.
The decision means that, during the period of the licence suspension, Southernpec is not allowed to operate as a bunker craft operator in the Port of Singapore.
Along with the bunker craft operator license, the bunker tanker ‘Southernpec 7’ was also suspended from conducting bunkering operations in port, Reuters reported citing an MPA source.
Singapore, the world’s largest marine refueling hub, became the first port to mandate the use of MFMs in 2017, making them compulsory for marine fuel oil bunker barges licensed by the port authority.
