No bunkers in Jeddah

A bunker broker was instructed by a tanker owner to arrange bunkers at Jeddah. The broker agreed a price verbally with the bunker supplier’s agent in Greece, and sent a confirmation by e-mail to the suppliers in Jeddah. Unfortunately, the e-mail “bounced” but the broker failed to notice the error message. The suppliers therefore never received the confirmation to supply the ship.

The brokers confirmed the stem to the tanker owner, but when the ship arrived at Jeddah the port was dry and the ship had to sail without bunkers. The next port of call was Haldia, India, where the prices were much higher and where 180 CST was the only fuel available.

The original price at Jeddah was USD303.75 per tonne, whereas the price at Haldia was USD435.50. The difference in price was approximately USD50,000, which the tanker owner recovered from the bunker broker.