SINGAPORE: Ethiopia has cancelled an import tender for up to 120,000 tonnes of diesel fuel for delivery over March to August, and may have bought it through private negotiations instead, traders said on Thursday.

Ethiopian Petroleum Supply Enterprise (EPSE) was seeking 80,000 to 120,000 tonnes of 500 ppm sulphur gasoil for delivery into Djibouti.

PetroChina had placed the lowest out of three offers at a $5.75 a barrel premium above Middle East quotes for the diesel cargo with a credit period of 150 days.

EPSE has likely negotiated the mini-term contract with current term supplier Vitol at similar premiums to its existing contract, a Singapore-based trader said. But this could not be confirmed with either EPSE or Vitol.

EPSE has an ongoing term contract with Vitol to buy 1 million tonnes of gasoil for 2015 at about $4 a barrel above Middle East quotes, traders said.

Copyright Reuters, 2015