Ocean Bunkering, the marine-fuel arm of troubled Hin Leong Trading, has formally notified the government of its intention to be liquidated.
In filings to Singapore’s Government Gazette, company directors Tan Thiam Hee and Tan Peter said Ocean Bunkering “cannot by reason of its liabilities continue its business”.
Leow Quek Shiong and Gary Loh Weng Fatt from BDO Advisory have been appointed as joint liquidators and a creditors’ meeting will be held via Zoom on 15 December.
Ocean Bunkering was the third largest marine fuel supplier in Singapore last year, according to government data. The city state is the world's biggest bunkering hub.
But the company began to wind down its operations in April after Hin Leong filed for court protection due to heavy losses amid the collapse in oil prices.
Over the past few months, Hin Leong’s lenders have launched fire sales of assets linked to the trader and its founder Lim Oon Kuin.
According to Ocean Bunkering’s website, the company previously owned 14 bunker barges from 400 to 6,500 dwt. It is not known how many of them are already sold.
For sale advert
In October, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), the court-appointed judicial manager of Hin Leong, placed a notice in local media for the sale of an "independent bunker fuel and lubricant supplier in Singapore".
The advert said that the majority shareholder of Hin Leong was “seeking to sell its shares in the firm”, pending relevant regulatory approval.
The identity of the company was not disclosed, but Ocean Bunkering was thought to be the Hin Leong subsidiary that fitted the description.
TradeWinds earlier reported Ocean Bunkering’s demise has paved the way for three major international fuel suppliers to move into the Singapore market.
Vitol, Minerva Bunkering and the TFG Marine have secured permits from the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) to operate in the top bunkering hub. TFG is a joint venture of Trafigura, Frontline and Golden Ocean.
The new entrants quickly moved into to fill the void left by Ocean Bunkering and establish their own fleets of bunker tankers, but there were concerns among local players that they could be cut out as middlemen.
According to the MPA, Singapore’s bunker sales amounted to 41.3m tonnes in the first 10 months of this year, up from 38.9m tonnes in the same period last year.
