Aegean Marine Petroleum Network Inc. has today announced that it has launched its physical supply operation in
Panama.
Including Panama, the company now serves 19 markets covering more than 50 ports worldwide, as compared to 5 service centers at the time of Aegean's IPO in December 2006. This year alone, Aegean has launched physical bunker supply operations in
Tenerife and
Cape Verde.
Aegean announced in April that it intended to commence supply operations in Panama by the the second quarter of 2011, revealing that it had a 20-year concession by the
Panamanian Maritime Authority (PMA) to operate onshore storage facilities in the ports of
Cristobal and
Balboa.
Aegean said the concession formed part of the PMA's efforts to expand and modernize the ports' infrastructure and services consistent with the current expansion of the Panama Canal. By 2014, the Panama Canal is expected to significantly increase its capacity, enabling larger ships to transit and providing greater efficiencies in global commerce.
The ports of Cristobal and Balboa are strategically positioned at each end of the Panama Canal, a critical conduit for international maritime trade that connects the Atlantic Ocean and Pacific Ocean. Both ports total approximately 14,000 transits per year and generate approximately 3 million metric tonnes of annual marine fuel sales volumes combined.
The two onshore storage facilities in Panama currently total approximately 3 million barrels in capacity, with room for expansion. Aegean says it intends to provide retail bunkering services to all major shipping sectors, particularly containerships, as well as leading cruise lines, in port and at sea.
