African Ports Struggle with Red Tape and Poor Infrastructure
South Africa’s major ports, including Durban, Cape Town, and Ngqura, are among the worst performing globally, according to a World Bank 2022 index released in May. Durban, the largest port in Africa, is still the most advanced, but ships rerouting around the continent have limited choices for berthing and replenishment. Other African deep-water ports along the Cape route, such as Mombasa in Kenya and Dar es Salaam in Tanzania, are ill-equipped to handle the expected increase in traffic over the next few weeks.
Given the challenges faced by these ports, shipping companies are making arrangements for refueling. Maersk, for instance, said vessels routing around the Cape will try to fuel at their origin or destination, but if necessary, they will decide on a case-by-case basis. Walvis Bay in Namibia and Port Louis in Mauritius are among the top options for bunkering en route.
Weather and Bureaucracy Add to the Concerns
Rough weather and high seas, which are common at the ‘Cape of Storms’ and the cyclone-prone Mozambique Channel, could lead to quicker fuel burn for ships. Refuelling services become crucial in such situations. Bureaucracy is also a concern, as BP, Trafigura, and Mercuria have all faced suspensions pending audits in South Africa.
Despite these challenges, there has been a significant increase in fuel volumes and vessels using ship-to-ship offshore bunkering in Algoa Bay since it started in 2016. Heron Marine, the TFG Marine affiliate operating in Algoa Bay, is working with customers to manage their bunkering requirements. South Africa is expecting a record high of fuel oil imports for December due to the demand for refuelling linked to the Houthi crisis, according to market analyst Younes Azzouzi from data and analytics specialist Kpler.