By Jonathan Saul and Libby George

LONDON, Nov 13 (Reuters) – As land storage websites worldwide attain brimming level on account of a provide glut, tens of thousands and thousands of barrels of oil are sitting on tankers in search of properties – threatening logistical paralysis.

The International Energy Agency on Friday stated saved oil has hit 3 billion barrels. Traders say the surplus of crude is leaving tankers queuing at main ports worldwide, lengthening ready instances to days, weeks and even months.

The lack of area to unload oil is tying up the tankers wanted to maintain oil shifting, and wells operating. The bottlenecks may power oil suppliers into fast, cut-priced gross sales simply to free area, including extra strain to grease costs already near six-year lows.

The price to rent a supertanker – every able to carrying 2 million barrels of oil – lately hit its highest stage since 2008 at over $100,000 a day final month and presently stays at over $70,000 a day.

“We’re alarmed,” stated Eugene Lindell, senior crude market analyst with JBC Energy. “There are growing indicators that it’s getting harder to digest this crude.”

FROM TEXAS TO CHINA

In the U.S. Gulf, greater than 50 industrial vessels have been anchored exterior ports close to Houston on the finish of final week, of which 41 have been tankers.

Trade sources stated there have been seven aframax tankers – every able to carrying as much as 700,000 barrels of oil – sitting exterior Rotterdam ready to unload. There was additionally practically 15 million barrels of unsold West African crude oil both loaded on tankers or ready to be loaded within the subsequent two weeks.

Shipping and port sources, pointing to full onshore storage, stated as much as 20 supertankers have been held up in Iraq’s Basrah terminal, with vessels experiencing loading delays of as much as 12 days.

One port supply stated at China’s Qingdao port, one supertanker was caught at anchorage since August and one other since final month.

“There are delays across the board as a lot of cargo is being put through the system. Port delays in Basrah and China in particular but also in many other areas. This is tying up capacity,” stated one tanker supply.

Shipping consultants MSI stated the near-term outlook for crude tankers was constructive.

“Storage space in China and Europe is dwindling, leading to extended discharge times. Couple this with ongoing high load waiting times in Iraq and Turkish Straits delays and (tanker) availability is tight,” MSI stated.

An issue for oil gamers is that tankers haven’t been booked on long-term charters. This is in distinction to the floating storage play seen earlier this yr, when ships have been parked at sea till costs recovered and have been then bought by oil merchants for a revenue.

Sources stated the present construct up was parked on vessels employed for shorter journeys, that means oil suppliers must unload quickly or face extra freight bills.

“Those holding stocks will either have to dump their cargoes at cheaper prices or pay those higher freight costs,” a commerce supply stated.

Another added: “Each minute the clock is ticking, they’re losing money.” (Additional reporting by Amanda Cooper, enhancing by William Hardy)

(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2015.

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