Singapore Aug bunker sales dip 5.8% from July; vessel calls ease

* Monthly sales dip for all conventional grades * Bio-blended LSFO sales extend climb to fresh high * LNG sales retreat, snapping uptrend from Jan 2023 By Jeslyn Lerh SINGAPORE, Sept 14 (Reuters) - Singapore's marine fuel sales, also known as bunker sales, retreated in August as vessel calls and container throughput fell from July, official data showed on Thursday. Sales in August totalled 4.26 million metric tons, down 5.8% month-on-month but up 3.4% year-on-year, data from the Maritime and Port Authority (MPA) showed. The decline came amid lower vessel calls for bunkering, which totalled 3,483 in August, dipping 0.8% from July. Bunker sales at Singapore are a key indicator of sentiment at the world's largest ship refuelling hub, which is also one of the busiest shipping lanes globally. Singapore's container throughput eased to 3,328,400 twenty-foot equivalent units in August, after hitting a year-to-date high in July. Low-sulphur fuel oil (LSFO) sales for bunkering totalled 2.51 million tons in August, down 5.8% from July. Meanwhile, high-sulphur marine fuel oil (MFO) sales totalled 1.39 million tons in August, down 6.1% from July. ALTERNATIVE FUELS Sales of bio-blended LSFO extended gains to a new monthly record high of 52,600 tons in August, reflecting a steady, though still gradual climb in volumes this year. Total bio-blended LSFO sales were at 281,500 tons in 2023 so far, the data showed. Meanwhile, bunker sales of liquefied natural gas fell at 15,600 tons in August, snapping an uptrend since January 2023. Total LNG bunker sales totalled 70,670 tons to date this year. Singapore monthly bunker sales by grade in '000 tons: Total MGO LSMGO MFO Bio-blend LSFO Bio-blende LNG Methanol ed MFO d LSFO Jan-22 4,029.0 13.8 335.9 1,122.4 0.0 2,555.9 1.0 0.0 0.0 Feb-22 3,506.8 10.6 280.5 924.1 0.0 2,276.4 12.5 2.7 0.0 Mar-22 3,769.9 9.7 272.0 1,091.2 0.0 2,393.5 3.3 0.2 0.0 Apr-22 3,750.0 7.9 278.9 978.5 0.0 2,475.1 9.2 0.4 0.0 May-22 4,044.0 5.8 300.9 1,094.8 0.0 2,637.3 4.4 0.8 0.0 Jun-22 3,756.0 6.9 272.4 1,121.0 0.0 2,345.4 8.2 2.1 0.0 Jul-22 4,119.2 13.8 313.8 1,287.6 0.0 2,499.3 3.2 1.6 0.0 Aug-22 4,116.3 11.3 330.4 1,263.0 0.0 2,498.2 13.4 0.0 0.0 Sep-22 3,959.5 6.3 329.4 1,158.3 0.0 2,444.7 19.8 1.0 0.0 Oct-22 4,252.8 11.1 305.1 1,348.5 0.0 2,564.9 21.5 1.7 0.0 Nov-22 4,375.6 22.8 307.8 1,290.3 0.0 2,728.6 23.1 2.9 0.0 Dec-22 4,217.8 20.6 285.6 1,312.4 0.0 2,575.7 20.6 2.9 0.0 Jan-23 4,378.3 10.8 313.7 1,251.1 0.0 2,774.1 27.2 1.4 0.0 Feb-23 3,795.9 6.2 297.0 1,142.7 0.0 2,320.0 28.5 1.6 0.0 Mar-23 4,179.0 14.7 315.5 1,268.0 0.0 2,549.2 27.9 3.7 0.0 Apr-23 4,258.8 15.3 312.2 1,218.4 1.3 2,669.3 37.0 5.2 0.0 May-23 4,525.3 27.5 312.9 1,445.2 0.5 2,697.6 34.6 7.1 0.0 Jun-23 3,932.9 12.0 271.5 1,237.5 1.0 2,358.8 34.3 17.9 0.0 Jul-23 4,517.5 22.3 287.6 1,484.0 0.5 2,665.2 39.4 18.3 0.3 Aug-23 * 4,255.1 8.1 274.5 1,393.0 0.0 2,511.4 52.6 15.6 0.0 (Data from Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore) (Figures are based on latest available data at the time of publishing, and may be subject to revision at a later date, based on MPA.) (Reporting by Jeslyn Lerh; Editing by Varun H K)