US residual fuel oil exports to Panama totaled 943,000 barrels in January, up more than three times from 303,000 barrels in the year-ago month, Energy Information Administration data showed Thursday.

Overall, the US exported 7.652 million barrels of residual fuel oil to 18 countries in January, down 6.38% from 8.174 million barrels in December, the data showed.

In terms of volume, Panama ranked third as a destination for the January exports. The top destination was Mexico, with 1.402 million barrels.

Panama buys residual fuel oil from the US Gulf Coast, Ecuador and Peru, among others. The fuel oil is blended as bunker fuel for the maritime sector and is used in the country’s power plants, market sources said.