Trading Giants Seek Oil Storage at Sea as Virus Creates Glut
- Vitol, Litasco among companies seeking to book ships: brokers
- Chinese refiners defer prompt cargoes as outbreak saps demand
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Three of the world’s largest oil traders are seeking to store crude on tankers at sea as the industry tries to deal with a glut that’s emerged since the outbreak of the coronavirus in China.
Vitol SA, Royal Dutch Shell Plc and Litasco SA are among firms asking about hiring supertankers for storage purposes as a sharp drop in Chinese demand due to the coronavirus prompts requests for cargo deferments, according to people familiar with the matter, shipbrokers and oil traders. Two oil tanker owners said last week that there was rising demand to store, without identifying the companies making the requests.