Platts, part of S&P Global Commodity Insights released on Thursday a consultation note for a new liquefied natural gas (LNG) price assessment for cargoes delivered a month after the front-month JKM benchmark.

Called JKM Forwards, this assessment will help industry participants manage supplies further ahead of time, said global head of LNG pricing Ciaran Roe.

They would be assessed daily with a target launch date of Jan. 16, 2024.

S&P said in an online statement that if the price assessment started on Jan. 16, for example, the first assessed JKM Forward month would be April 2024, following the JKM benchmark’s front-month March assessment.

“JKM Forwards would be another step in the journey towards increased pricing transparency in Asian LNG, which as a commodity has probably seen the speediest market development of any major cargo market in the last five years,” Roe said.

“These physical forwards would provide companies with the ability to manage security of supply further ahead as the trading window starts one month after that of JKM’s.”

The JKM, or the Japan-Korea-Marker, is the LNG benchmark price assessment for spot physical cargoes in Asia.

The new JKM Forwards will be in addition to the existing JKM benchmark and that assessment method remains unchanged, added Roe.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Emily Chow; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)