Bonded bunker fuel — VLSFO and MGO — carries no consumption tax at the bonded stage, which is the cost floor that separates it from domestic heavy oil. The recent widening of the green marine-fuel pilot (LNG, methanol) to more hubs is re-pricing the bunkering math for international transshipment tonnage calling at Zhoushan and the outer Shanghai port.

Imported fuel oil at 1.2 yuan/litre and diluted bitumen by reference, about 1,200 yuan/tonne equivalent; in-quota crude looks better.

Fuel oil used domestically carries consumption tax of roughly ¥1,218/t, while bitumen sits outside the levy. Goods moved through the bonded zone defer VAT and consumption tax until leaving the zone; outright trade pays on arrival. Three-document consistency and SHA-256 title fingerprints, placed upstream, lock the deferral inside a compliant path.

Since June 2021, imported fuel oil and diluted bitumen carry consumption tax as refined-product items — roughly 1.2 yuan/liter, adding about 1,200 yuan/t to delivered cost. The levy erased much of the cheap-substitute-feedstock arbitrage and pushed refiners back toward quota-backed crude.