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A.P. Moller - Maersk reports that its Ocean segment spent $476m less on bunker fuel in 2019 compared to the previous year.

The boxship operator's total annual spend on marine fuels declined by 9.4 percent to $4.566bn last year, down from $5.042bn in 2018.

The average bunker price paid by Ocean in 2019 was $412 per tonne - a drop of $12, or 2.8 percent, on the $424-per-tonne figure recorded in 2018, which was the highest annual average price since 2014.

In terms of bunker consumption, Ocean purchased 11.092m tonnes of marine fuel last year, representing a year-on-year (YoY) decrease of 802,000 tonnes, or 6.7 percent.

Quarterly breakdown, bunker fuel

	Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4
Consumption (MMT)	2.739	2.777	2.803	2.773
Cost ($bn)	1.142	1.210	1.118	1.096
Avg Price ($/mt)	417	436	399	395

Maersk average bunker price, 2015-2019

Year	Price($/mt)	+/-($)	+/-(%)
2019	412	-12	-2.8
2018	424	+103	+32.1
2017	321	+98	+43.9
2016	223	-92	-29.2
2015	315	-247	-44.0

Key financial results for 2019

In its financial results for the year, Ocean reported operating earnings (EBITDA) of $4.356bn, which was a YoY improvement of $574m, or 15.2 percent.

Revenue during the 12-month period rose by 52m, or 0.2 percent, to $28.418bn.

As regards overall group performance, A.P. Moller - Maersk posted a net underlying profit of $546m - a rise of $607m on the previous year's result.

EBITDA grew YoY by $715m, or 14.3 percent to $5.712bn, whilst revenue dipped $367m, or 0.9 percent, to $38.89bn

Guidance for 2020

In its guidance for 2019, Maersk said a $100 change in the price of bunker fuel would lead to the group's EBITDA varying by $0.4bn.