Private sectors allowed to handle fuel oil-refilling operations at commercial harbors

Taipei, March 8, 2005 (CENS)--In line with the oil market liberalization, Taiwan's four international commercial harbors, including Keelung, Taichung, Hualien, and Kaohsiung, will liberalize fuel oil-refilling operations to the private sector, breaking the monopoly of the state-run Chinese Petroleum Corp. (CPC).

It is estimated the new business opportunities to be released by the four international harbors for the privately owned oil companies will reach NT$20 billion (US$645.16 million at US$1:NT$31) a year. Keelung Harbor Bureau will first offer tenders for private sector to bid for the new business sometime in June.

C.H. Wang, director of Keelung Harbor Bureau, said Keelung harbor saw vessel fuel oil-refilling amount to 370,000 and 310,000 metric tons in 2002 and 2003, respectively. To upgrade service quality and lower the refilling costs of the vessels, Keelung Harbor Bureau will add another oil supplier, in addition to CPC, the exclusive supplier of fuel oil for commercial vessels at the harbor at present.

Qualifications for the bidders should be firms with business scope including gas refilling, imports and exports of oil, warehousing and distribution, and related services. In addition, the bidders are requested to get the approvals from the Cabinet-level Environmental Protection Administration in liability insurance and financial guaranty to meet the need for coping with oceanic-pollution compensation.

Kaohsiung Harbor, the largest of its kind in Taiwan, said it saw 30,600-strong vessels calling and departing a year. The harbor provided fuel-oil refilling amounts of two million and 2.03 million metric tons. At present, CPC is the sold operator conducting fuel-oil refilling in the Harbor. The Kaohsiung Harbor Bureau noted it has decided to open the market to another one in the near future.

Although Taichung and Hualien harbor bureaus haven't yet decided to open the fuel-oil refilling market to new operators, they are considering following the footsteps of counterparts of Keelung and Kaohsiung harbors to do the same thing in the foreseeable future.

To meet the deregulation of fuel-oil refilling market and retain its market share, CPC has built a 5,000-kiloliter oil-refilling vessel. Formosa Petrochemical Corp., an oil subsidiary of the Formosa Plastics Group, has set aside NT$300 million (US$9.67 million) to expand a warehousing tank near the Kaohsiung harbor. The company said it would seek a cooperative firm to tap the fuel-oil refilling market.