Thai agencies work to ease rules on ship-to-ship transfer of LPG

State ministries are collaborating to ease regulations on ship-to-ship transfer of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) to help prevent a shortage of the fuel nationwide, the Bangkok Post reports. PTT Plc rents out the floating unit, which can store 50,000 tons of LPG for 1 million baht (US$30,156.82) a day. The Energy, Finance and Transport ministries are working with PTT, Thailand’s sole LPG importer, to facilitate offshore transfers. All imported petroleum products must now be transferred from transport ships to onshore storage for tax purposes, said Energy Minister Wannarat Channukul. PTT, after collaborating with the Finance and Transport ministries, recently received an operating license for its LPG floating storage unit in Chon Buri, Thailand’s only facility for ship-to-ship transfer of petroleum products. (February 2, 2010)