A steady stream of bitumen export cargoes and truck supplies into inland markets have continued from Motor Oil Hellas' (MOH) 180,000 b/d Agioi Theodoroi refinery and terminal at Corinth despite the shut down of a crude distillation unit.
The refinery was hit by a fire on 17 September which MOH said caused "damage" and injured three sub-contractors, adding that the refinery was running at a "lower capacity level" as a result.
MOH has since remained tight-lipped about the operational status of the facility, although one of its crude distillation units (CDU) was shut as a result of the fire, and remains down, illustrated by considerably reduced crude deliveries.
Bitumen trading, supply and buying firms on cargo and truck markets said the CDU halt, which they estimate could last 3-6 months, had caused no significant bitumen loading or supply issues, with production not as badly affected as for other products, most notably high-sulphur fuel oil (HSFO). The outage helped drive refining differentials for Rotterdam HSFO barges against front-month Ice Brent crude futures from their usual discounts to a premium for the first time since August 2023.
Bitumen market participants also pointed to weaker than expected demand in key export markets including Romania and much of north and central Europe ahead of the usual winter activity slowdown — along with the continued rainy season slowdown in west African road project activity and bitumen demand — as contributing to keeping bitumen cargo values down.
A sustained flow of typically 4,000t bitumen cargoes exported by Greece's other refinery bitumen producer, Helleniq Energy, under tenders and spot deals — with a fresh sell tender on 18 October for a 4-6 November cargo loading at its 137,000 b/d Aspropyrgos refinery — has added to east Mediterranean oversupply.
Market participants said the most recent MOH cargo offers for standard Mediterranean cargo sizes around 5,000t have been at fob discounts of around $10/t to fob Mediterranean HSFO cargoes, while Helleniq exports are indicated at fob discounts of at least $15/t, with no sign of a boost to differentials following the fire.
The latest bitumen cargo to load at Agioi Theodoroi is on the 5,897dwt Iver Accord, which today left the terminal for Djen Djen, Algeria. The 7,944dwt Lilstella, under time charter with an international trading firm, will make its second consecutive bitumen cargo loading at Corinth when it arrives on 24 October, with the first loading proceeding under the pre-agreed dates before being shipped to Mohammedia with the same loading schedule expected for the second.
Another international trading firm moved an Agioi Theodoroi cargo to Mohammedia, arriving 19 October on the 8,021dwt Poestella, again with no loading issues indicated. The 4,531dwt Stella Maris moved a cargo from Corinth to a Thessaloniki storage facility — arriving 2 October — for onward truck shipment to inland export markets including Romania, where Greek product remains highly price competitive.
The only loading issues reported occurred over the few days following the 17 September fire when a large cargo loaded at the MOH terminal on the 45,986dwt Rubis Asphalt bitumen tanker Bitu Atlantic was delayed and its volume lower than planned. That shipment was moved to Rubis' west African terminal hub at Lome, Togo.
The Corinth refinery is one of Europe's leading bitumen producing and exporting plants, last year exporting around 1.1mn t, up from just over 800,000t in 2022. Helleniq Energy increased its Aspropyrgos cargo exports to around 100,000t last year from 70,000t in 2022.
Six bitumen cargoes totalling around 24,000t will have loaded at Aspropyrgos in the month to 25 October.
