Port of Santos prioritizes berthing of gasoline-laden vessel

Vessel MH Buiki brought the fuel from Terminal Marítimo de Madre de Deus, in Bahia, to the Terminal de Granéis Líquidos da Alemoa (Disclosure/APS)

The Autoridade Portuária de Santos (APS) authorized the priority berthing of a vessel carrying approximately 20,000 tons of gasoline (equivalent to roughly 600 tanker trucks). According to APS, the decision is due to the effects of the war between United States and Israel against Iran, which has caused instability in global fuel distribution due to the obstruction of the Strait of Hormuz in the Middle East for vessels from certain countries.

“It is the role of the Port of Santos, as a public port, to assess the needs of the country and allow, under rigorous analysis, certain vessels to be granted priority under specific conditions”, explains the president of the port authority, Anderson Pomini.

“APS reviewed a request from a distributor and, given the risk of fuel shortages in the State of São Paulo, authorized the priority entry of the vessel MH Ibuki”, the president emphasizes, noting the role of the Port of Santos at this critical moment affecting the economies of several countries, including Brazil.

The vessel MH Buiki, flying the Panama flag, transported the fuel from the Terminal Marítimo de Madre de Deus, in Bahia. The cabotage operation was completed on March 30, with the unloading of 17,974 tons of type A gasoline at the Terminal de Granéis Líquidos da Alemoa (Tegla), in Santos. Priority authorization was granted due to the real possibility of supply shortages in the state, as confirmed by the Agência Nacional do Petróleo, Gás Natural e Biocombustíveis (ANP).

“The special authorization directly benefited consumers in São Paulo by reducing the risk of gasoline shortages at fuel stations. APS’s Operations Directorate (Diope) has received several such requests, which are being carefully reviewed”, the port authority said in a statement.

Diope denied a priority berthing request from another fuel company because six other vessels carrying the same type of product were already ahead in the queue. “In other words, if we are granting berthing priority for fuel supply, one fuel cargo cannot be allowed to overtake another”, said the Operations Director, Beto Mendes.