The Dated Brent global physical crude oil benchmark is working well, with no need for significant methodology changes, S&P Global Energy Platts said at a briefing in London on Wednesday.
Dated Brent, the most significant physical oil benchmark, is used to price more than 60% of globally traded crude and underpins oil futures. Its value affects fuel prices paid by consumers and businesses.
The last major change S&P Global Energy made was adding U.S. WTI Midland to the Dated Brent benchmark in May 2023 to help bolster liquidity amid declining North Sea output.
“It’s reflective of the market, it’s working and we are seeing trades and performance on a regular basis,” Emma Kettley, associate editorial director of crude and fuel oil, said.
Platts said just under 200 cargoes had traded so far in 2025, almost in line with last year’s levels, with WTI Midland bringing significant liquidity.
U.S. TERMINAL PROPOSAL
Platts on Tuesday announced a methodology proposal to allow traders to load WTI Midland from different U.S. terminals for larger shipments to Europe.
WTI Midland is sold into Europe under the Dated Brent methodology on 700,000-barrel cargoes on Aframax tankers.
However, participants can save on freight by combining Aframax cargoes onto larger VLCC tankers.
Currently, Platts requires all oil cargoes loaded onto a larger vessel to have originated from a single Platts-approved terminal, but it is now proposing to allow compliant WTI Midland loadings from multiple Platts-approved terminals, provided the cargoes are in segregated tanks on board the vessel and have separate documents.
The price reporting agency is seeking feedback by January 16, with the change potentially taking effect next May.
Platts has made other tweaks to the methodology since adding WTI Midland concerning freight-related calculations and U.S. loadings. It most recently added Texas International Terminal in July this year as its 13th approved U.S. terminal for WTI Midland.
Source: Reuters
