United Fuel Services (UFS) was founded in March 2007 when the Briese, Hartmann and Schoeller Holding group of companies centralised their fuel requirements into one unit based in Bremen, Germany. Acting as the owner's sole representative in the marketplace, UFS sources products and services for the accounts of the various individual shipping companies. The UFS role diers from the usual role of a broker as the company does not require commission from suppliers/sellers. Instead, it forwards the net prices and the bunker bill directly to the end-user for settlement.