“There has been some measure of exposure to OW Bunker. It is important to note that our exposure is approximately $7.8m, which we expect to recover in full,” Nikolas Tavlarios, president of Aegean said during its third quarter results call.
“We are confident in our ability to cut these outstanding amounts as OW Bunker do not hold title to or maintain any separate rights to any marine field delivered by Aegean, and all fuel was delivered under Aegean’s terms and conditions.”
Tavlarios was keen to stress Aegean’s internal policies and protocols and that it has a different business model to that of OW Bunker.
“We continue to conduct quarterly reviews to examine our procedures and ensure that we have the appropriate practices to manage risk appropriately. Over the last three years, OW Bunker was able to grow sales volume at a rate of 20% per year by offering aggressive pricing and supporting their volume through oil trading operations,” he said.
“I would like to make it clear that this is not what Aegean does - we act as a physical supplier and we do not carry unnecessary risks or take speculative positions. We only hedge our purchased inventory and we will transact with credit worthy customers.”
With a different business model Tavlarios also said the situation created business opportunities for Aegean. “We believe this industry development will create the opportunity for Aegean to capture market share, increase our base as risk-averse owners move away from resellers and toward physical suppliers like Aegean and potentially bolster our world class sales force by adding new talented professionals,” he stated.
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