Bunker volume discounts through demand pooling
Small stems, bought together, priced like a large one.
A 500 tonne stem and a 20,000 tonne block are not quoted on the same terms, and the reason is not favouritism — the second is worth competing for. An operator with small parcels has no way to reach those terms alone. Pooling demand is how they do it together.
What it does
- Committed demand from several buyers in one port and delivery window, presented to suppliers as one block
- The supplier writes the rebate ladder: how much comes back per tonne at each level the pool reaches
- A member can be asked to lift a minimum of their own to qualify for a rung — volume you bring, not volume you sit beside
- Rebates are settled on tonnage actually delivered, after the window closes, and are never reclaimed afterwards
- Each member sees their own band and their own tonnage — not the other members’ positions
- A participation agreement is issued to every member, stating the mandate, the tolerance and what the platform is paid
Who it is for
Operators lifting small to mid-size stems who repeatedly get quoted as a small parcel, and suppliers who would rather negotiate one block than a dozen separate stems.
Why a supplier prices a block differently
The decisive factor is competition, not cost. A block of committed demand is worth winning, and a supplier will give up margin per tonne to win it because the tonnage more than compensates. That is the whole mechanism, and it is why the discount is real rather than a courtesy.
Settled on what actually moved
Rebates are calculated on delivered tonnage after the delivery window closes, not on what was pledged. A member who lifts less than they committed does not drag everyone down retroactively, and a member who has earned a rung keeps it — delivered tonnage only goes up, so a band once crossed cannot be lost.
Nothing is ever clawed back after the fact. A rebate paid is a rebate kept.
What each side sees
Members of one pool may be competitors. A member sees the band they are in and their own committed and delivered tonnage — never another member’s figures, and not the pool aggregate while that could be used to work out someone else’s position.
The supplier sees the demand they are being asked to price, because they cannot quote credit terms blind.
Common questions
How does a bunker volume discount actually work in a pool?
Several buyers commit tonnage in the same port and delivery window. The supplier sets a ladder — the more the pool delivers in total, the higher the rebate per tonne. Members are invoiced at the base price and the rebate is settled after the window closes.
What if I lift less than I committed?
There is a stated tolerance for ordinary trade variance. Beyond it, the shortfall is dealt with under the participation agreement — but rebates already earned by other members on delivered tonnage are not reversed.
Do other members see how much I buy?
No. A member sees their own band and their own tonnage. The aggregate is withheld where it could be used to derive another member’s position.
Who pays the platform?
The supplier, per tonne delivered. It is stated in the participation agreement issued to every member rather than left implicit.
Free for shipowners
Bunker procurement is free for shipowners — suppliers pay the commission. The compliance layer comes with it.