Middle East crude benchmarks Oman and Dubai both gained, with Trafigura going to deliver more November spot cargoes after deals on the window despite mixed supply-demand outlooks.

Trafigura will deliver one November Al-Shaheen crude to Mitsui after the window deal, while this is the third cargo the Japanese trading house has bought this week.

Both premiums were slated for a month-on-month increase following a drop in fixed futures price level and buying interest in the past few weeks.

Markets were focused mostly on refinery run cuts expected in October, with seasonal maintenance ongoing as well, though some were still hoping for China refining runs to be propped up from Yulong Petchem’s start-up.

The Brent-Dubai price spread closed the week at $1.64 a barrel, the lowest level since around mid-September. The spread was on track to fall month on month, with some analysts saying it could be due to a recovery in supplies in Libya soon that will ease up prompt tightness in that region.

RUSSIAN CRUDE:

Following is a list of Russian Urals crude oil cargoes primary allocations in September, 2024, according to trading sources.

SINGAPORE CASH DEALS

Cash Dubai’s premium to swaps rose 20 cents to $2.37 a barrel.

REFINERY NEWS REF/OUT

– Citgo Petroleum shut down its 177,000 barrel-per-day (bpd) refinery at Lemont, Illinois, on Wednesday afternoon due to a power blip by its electricity supplier, the company confirmed on Thursday.

– South Korea’s S-Oil 010950.KS has shut the No. 1 crude distillation unit (CDU) and some refining units at its Onsan refinery for a scheduled overhaul this week, sources familiar with the matter said on Friday.

NEWS

– Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that the vast domestic energy sector will be able to achieve its goals and overcome “illegal” Western sanctions while also praising ties with BRICS and OPEC+ groups.

– Representatives of Libya’s rival eastern and western legislative bodies, in talks facilitated by the United Nations, signed an agreement on Thursday to end a crisis over leadership of the central bank, nominating an interim governor and deputy.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Trixie Yap; Editing by Tasim Zahid)