Singapore bunker firm facing $16 million in claims
Bunker company Baxus Marine (Baxus) is facing in excess of $16 million in claims in Singapore, according to court documents seen by Platts on Wednesday, Ship & Bunker reports.
OPET Trade (Singapore), OceanConnect Marine, United Bunkering & Trading (Asia), Global Energy Trading, Singamas Marketing, and I&C International say they are owed a total of $16,047,647.45 and 8,712.619 metric tonnes (mt) of 380 cSt bunker fuel.
According to the court documents, Baxus was forced to sell bunkers at a "rate significantly lower" than what it had paid for them in order to meet its contractual supply obligations.
Baxus added that the "downturn in the shipping industry which was further exacerbated by the dismal state of the global economy" had also added to its woes.
According to the report, on October 5, 2012 Baxus' director Oh Tien Zer applied to the Singapore courts to put the company under the judicial management of accountants BDO LLP.
Baxus says the company would be more valuable to its creditors if it continued operating, or if it was sold as a "single economic unit as opposed to a piecemeal distribution" of its assets, but the six creditors indicated in the court documents that they oppose the move and intend to seek to wind up the company.
Documents on Singapore's Supreme Court website show the hearing to decide whether the firm will be placed under judicial management is set for tomorrow, November 9, 2012.
According to Baxus' website, its core business is in marine fuel logistics, bunker trading, and supplies operating within the ports of Malaysia and Singapore.
Operating as a wholesaler of marine fuels, Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) data indicates Baxus Marine is not an accredited bunker supplier in Singapore.
