FUJAIRAH DATA: Oil product stocks drop as fuel from Russia stalls

Stockpiles of oil products at the UAE’s Port of Fujairah dropped to a three-week low as of Sept. 2, with heavy distillates used as ship fuel and for power generation dropping 10% in one week, according to the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone.

The total fell 5.3% week on week to 16.858 million barrels as of Sept. 2, the lowest since Aug. 12, FOIZ data published Sept. 4 showed. Since mid-July, stockpiles have dropped every week except one, after bottoming out at a 10-month low of 16.458 million barrels on Aug. 12. Stockpiles have dropped 2.8% since the end of 2023.

Heavy distillates and residues declined to 8.001 million barrels, a two-week low and close to the two-and-a-half-year low of 7.802 million barrels on Aug. 19. Russia’s fuel oil shipments to Fujairah soared in August to an average 84,700 b/d, from 59,100 b/d in July, but dropped to zero in the most recent week started Aug. 26, according to Kpler data.

Kommersant reported that Russia had raised its fuel oil exports in August after refineries increased processing following the end of spring maintenance, with the main destinations being China, India and Saudi Arabia. Processing, and subsequently exports, also increased at the Novoshakhtinsky and Tuapse refineries which earlier in the year had suspended operations after drone attacks.

Platts, part of S&P Global Commodity Insights, assessed high sulfur fuel oil delivered Fujairah at $460 per metric ton as of Aug. 30 from $453/t a week earlier. Low-sulfur fuel oil delivered Fujairah climbed to $614/t from $605/t over the same period.

Stockpiles of light distillates such as gasoline and naphtha at Fujairah climbed 3.5% in the latest week to 6.501 million barrels, a two-week high, while middle distillates, including diesel and jet fuel, declined 8.9% to 2.356 million barrels, the lowest in three weeks.

Product exports from Fujairah averaged 653,000 b/d in August, up from 534,000 b/d in July, led by Singapore at 164,000 b/d, according to Kpler data. Pakistan received 51,700 b/d of gasoline from Fujairah in August, the highest volume since July 2021, according to the data. There were no exports to Saudi Arabia in August for the first month since April 2022.

Since the end of 2023, heavy distillates have dropped 21%, middle distillates have fallen 6% and light distillates have climbed 39%.