SINGAPORE - Kuwait Petroleum Corp has cancelled a tender to sell naphtha, the second time it has withdrawn an offer in less than two weeks, industry sources said on Wednesday, but the company could not immediately confirm the withdrawal due to a holiday.
The sources said KPC had offered a 24,000-tonne light grade naphtha cargo for March 11-12 loading through a tender which was expected to be awarded late last week but was subsequently cancelled.
KPC on Feb. 14 cancelled a tender to sell 25,000 tonnes of full-range naphtha for Feb. 21-22 loading due to unworkable bids, the sources said.
KPC is not the only Middle Eastern supplier seen cancelling offers as Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. (ADNOC) did not sell a cargo on Feb. 17 due to low bids.
Naphtha demand is expected to be weaker as crackers in Japan and Malaysia are headed for scheduled maintenance.
Taiwan has already started its turnaround season, resulting in CPC selling excess naphtha in a rare move as it is usually an importer of the petrochemical feedstock.
Adding to the cracker maintenance season are weak petrochemical margins which resulted in crackers cutting throughput.
The fast-spreading coronavirus outside China has further added to petrochemical makers' woes. Spot premiums have been falling as a result of weaker fundamentals.
(Reporting by Seng Li Peng; editing by Nick Macfie) ((lipeng.seng@thomsonreuters.com; +65 6870 3086; Reuters Messaging: lipeng.seng.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
