Shanghai Bunker Quantities: Follow the Vessel Parcel

Key takeaways

• Identify the delivery event represented by each quantity.
• Separate upstream stock movements from the receiving vessel's parcel.
• Do not treat a multi-delivery supply total as one buyer's receipt.
• Investigate differences through relevant evidence without inferring loss or misconduct.

The supply record has more than one purpose

Shanghai's published bonded-oil measures address records of purchases, sales and stock movements. Shanghai bonded-oil measures

Those records have defined roles within the supply chain. Their existence does not make every recorded quantity equivalent to a particular vessel's accepted delivery. Check the current applicable text and obtain qualified review where regulatory interpretation is required.

For a current transaction, the parcel-level reconciliation is not provided; obtain current verified information. Record the receiving vessel, actual delivery references, accepted quantity, upstream evidence connection and unresolved differences.

Identify the event before comparing its number

An upstream loading record can describe product loaded for several intended deliveries. A stock record can describe a balance at a particular location. A receiving-vessel document can describe the parcel supplied during a specific event.

The reviewer should identify which event and boundary each record concerns. A difference between them may reflect different scope rather than an error in either document.

Do not rename all such figures delivered quantity in the spreadsheet. Preserve the source description and use a separate field for the accepted invoicing quantity under the actual purchase.

Keep the buyer's parcel distinct from a wider supply movement

Where a supplier uses a wider stock or logistics arrangement, the buyer needs the evidence relevant to its own parcel. It does not need to infer the disposition of every other quantity from an incomplete document pack.

Ask how the receiving-vessel reference connects to the proposed invoice and supporting delivery evidence. If the supplier provides a total covering several events, request the relevant breakdown or appropriate confirmation.

A wider total can still be useful for a particular traceability question, but it should not become the buyer's billable quantity without the contractual and delivery basis that supports that conclusion.

A quantity-boundary review table

Fictional case: the upstream total becomes the invoice check

A fictional Shanghai buyer receives its delivery record together with an upstream loading summary covering a wider supply movement. The accounts reviewer uses the larger loading total as the expected receipt and flags the vessel's smaller parcel as a shortage.

The buying desk identifies that the documents describe different events. It obtains the relevant receiving-vessel breakdown and connects the invoice to the actual accepted delivery reference.

The wider loading record remains available for its proper purpose, but it no longer drives the buyer's quantity comparison. Any genuine difference within the vessel parcel can now be investigated without confusing it with other deliveries or retained stock.

Do not explain an unresolved difference prematurely

If relevant records disagree on the same parcel and basis, preserve the exact difference and refer it to the responsible reviewers. Do not infer evaporation, measurement error, physical loss or misconduct from arithmetic alone.

Procurement can identify missing references, inconsistent units and conflicting scopes. Technical interpretation of measurement evidence belongs with qualified personnel using the applicable agreed method.

Where payment or claims are affected, distinguish the recognised quantity from the disputed position. Check the current agreement and obtain appropriate review of rights rather than assuming that one document automatically overrides every other record.

Keep product and time boundaries aligned

Even records from the same vessel can concern different grades or delivery events. Preserve the product description and event reference before combining quantities.

A later corrected record should clearly identify what it replaces. If it supplements another delivery instead, both may belong in the total, but only on the supported basis. Do not decide between replacement and addition from the file date alone.

The final reconciliation should explain which quantities are included, which are excluded and why. A reviewer should be able to reconstruct the vessel parcel without interpreting unexplained spreadsheet adjustments.

Carry the correct basis into the final account

Once the accepted quantity is established, apply the agreed price and service terms. Keep any financial credit distinct from a physical quantity correction unless its actual basis says otherwise.

Retain the evidence boundary in management reporting as well. A supplier's larger stock movement should not inflate the buyer's purchased tonnes, and the buyer's invoice should not be used to estimate the supplier's whole operation.

Common mistakes

Avoid using upstream totals as vessel receipts, combining different grades or events without explanation and treating every later record as an additional delivery. Other errors include inventing a technical cause for an unresolved difference or using a financial adjustment to rewrite the physical parcel.

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