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MABUX ARA LNG Bunker Index
Port LNG$/mton MGO LS$/mton Date
ARA
1 041.00
+47.00
1 045.00
-25.00
Jun 9
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Port	LNG$/mton	MGO LS$/mton	Date
ARA	1 041.00	+47.00	1 045.00	-25.00	Jun 9

MABUX Global Bunker Index

380HSFO$/mton		VLS FO$/mton		MGO LS$/mton		Date
683.82	-20.15	840.29	-20.04	1 249.39	-40.25	Jun 10

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MABUX Market Differential Index (MDI)

Correlation between market bunker prices (MBP) and MABUX Digital Bunker Price Benchmark (DBP)

All Indexes in $/mton	380HSFO			VLS FO			MGO LS			Date
All Indexes in $/mton	MBP Index	DBP Index	MDI	MBP Index	DBP Index	MDI	MBP Index	DBP Index	MDI	Date
Rotterdam	580	644	-64	665	713	-48	1 045	1 173	-128	Jun 10
Singapore	610	672	-62	760	798	-38	1 136	1 166	-30	Jun 10
Fujairah	650	617	+33	1 200	755	+445	1 510	1 229	+281	Jun 10
Houston	645	658	-13	738	762	-24	1 077	1 130	-53	Jun 10

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Latest News
- 2026-06-10
  Vitol advances refinery ESG rollout while shipping fleet beats IMO carbon intensity target, 2025 ESG Report reveals
  Vitol’s 2025 ESG Report has detailed the group’s progress in delivering its ESG strategy across portfolio refineries. According to the report, the group’s shipping fleet also continued to exceed the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) carbon intensity... Read more
- 2026-06-10
  Bunkering services targeted in EU’s next sanctions package against Russia
  The European Union’s proposed 21st sanctions package against Russia will, for the first time, apply to bunker vessels that supply the shadow fleet, and the package also seeks to pause the adjustment mechanism in the oil price cap until January 2027 as... Read more
- 2026-06-10
  EC rolls out €1.5 billion Battery Booster Facility
  A new Battery Booster Facility, formally launched by the European Commission (EC) yesterday (9 June), is intended to ramp up battery production Europe for electric vehicles, although the EC announcement highlights that ‘off takers may use the [battery... Read more
- 2026-06-10
  First B100 bunkering of a tanker in Hong Kong for CPN
  Chimbusco Pan Nation (CPN) has wrapped up its first B100 marine biodiesel bunkering of a tanker in Hong Kong. The operation, which was completed on Monday (8 June), saw the TORM CORRIDO fuelled by CPN’s dedicated bunker tanker Guo Si, which has been... Read more
- 2026-06-10
  Stade floating LNG terminal set for September launch
  Deutsche Energy Terminal GmbH (DET) has announced that, after experiencing challenges during the construction of the floating Stade LNG terminal, the facility is scheduled to begin operations in September and there is now ‘a clear roadmap toward the first... Read more
- 2026-06-10
  Agastya ramping up green methanol production, supply and bunkering activities in India and Sri Lanka
  Agastya Green Fuels has announced new agreements which it says will position India’s Andhra Pradesh as ‘a global hub for sustainable marine fuels and green industrial products’, and also ‘create a new green maritime energy corridor connecting India and... Read more
- 2026-06-10
  Oil rises nearly 1% as US launches new strikes against Iran, supply tightens
  Oil prices climbed about 1% on Wednesday, moving away from a seven-week low touched in the previous session, after the U.S. military launched new strikes against Iran and as market data showed another large draw in U.S. crude stocks. The U.S. military’s... Read more Oil prices climbed about 1% on Wednesday, moving away from a seven-week low touched in the previous session, after the U.S. military launched new strikes against Iran and as market data showed another large draw in U.S. crude stocks.
  
  The U.S. military’s strikes on Iranian targets followed after President Donald Trump vowed on Tuesday to respond to the downing of a U.S. Apache attack helicopter overnight, in a fresh escalation that threatens to unravel a fragile ceasefire between Washington and Tehran.
  
  Brent futures rose 83 cents, or 0.9% to $92.29 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude climbed 68 cents, or 0.8%, to $88.97.
  
  Brent had settled at its lowest on Tuesday since April 17, while WTI had closed down at its weakest since May 29 after Israel and Iran halted direct attacks on each other after Trump urged them to stop.
  
  Tehran said it would resume hostilities if Israel continued to attack the Hezbollah militia in Lebanon. Israel’s refusal to end its campaign against Iran-backed Hezbollah has hindered Trump’s efforts to extend a tenuous ceasefire in the wider U.S.-Israeli war with Iran into a durable settlement.
  
  At the same time, Tehran has continued to block most shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, which normally carries a fifth of the world’s crude oil and liquefied natural gas. Washington has imposed its own blockade of Iranian ports.
  
  U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said on Tuesday that ship traffic in the Gulf and oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz are rising even as Washington and Tehran struggle to reach a deal on ending their more than three-month-old war.
  
  On the supply side, U.S. crude oil inventories fell last week for an eighth consecutive week, according to market sources citing data from the American Petroleum Institute released on Tuesday, while gasoline stocks also declined.
  
  Crude stocks fell by 9.12 million barrels in the week ended June 5, the sources said on condition of anonymity, while gasoline inventories fell by 1.19 million barrels.
  
  The United States has acted as a marginal supplier of crude and products during the war and ramped up exports to Asia and Europe. Lower U.S. inventories could hurt exports and push up prices. Source: Reuters/Investing.com
- 2026-06-10
  Disconnected Oil Futures Market Could See Price Spike within Weeks
  For more than three months, oil market participants have hoped that the Middle East conflict would be resolved any day now, while about 13 million barrels per day (bpd) have been wiped off global supply due to the closed Strait of Hormuz. The oil futures... Read more For more than three months, oil market participants have hoped that the Middle East conflict would be resolved any day now, while about 13 million barrels per day (bpd) have been wiped off global supply due to the closed Strait of Hormuz.
  
  The oil futures market has been mostly guided by sentiment and traders’ hopes of an imminent peace deal – as U.S. President Donald Trump has been touting for weeks – with oil prices increasingly disconnected from the reality on the ground, or more precisely, in storage tanks.
  
  The reality is that global oil stocks, including those in the United States, are plummeting as governments draw on strategic reserves to offset part of the massive losses of supply from the Middle East.
  
  Each day that passes without normalized traffic through the Strait of Hormuz is further draining stocks, which top industry officials warn are on track for critically low level within weeks.
  
  Cargoes would still need weeks to reach buyers even if the Strait of Hormuz reopened unconditionally today to free traffic, which isn’t the case with Iran’s demands in the negotiations with the U.S. to have operational control over the Strait.
  Related: Kuwait Offers First Crude Cargoes to Asia since Iran War Started
  
  Of course, most oil flows could return if tanker owners and operators are willing to risk venturing into and out of the chokepoint, knowing that any peace deal could quickly unravel with one Israeli strike in Lebanon or one “I’ll blow them up” post about Iran by President Trump.
  
  Depleted
  
  Many traders appear unfazed in the face of the 13 million bpd supply loss, as they still hope for a quick resolution to the conflict – for over three months now – and bet on a gusher of oil supply when the Strait of Hormuz reopens.
  
  In reality, even if the Strait reopened today, supply would take weeks and even months to reach customers, leaving a large gap in supply at the start of the peak summer demand season.
  
  So far, the oil market has relied on oil on water, de-sanctioned Russian crude (and for a month even unsanctioned Iranian crude, too), and drawing on stocks to fill the gap. The market has also been lucky that China had amassed an estimated more than 1.2 billion barrels of oil in commercial and strategic reserves before the war, and its imports have collapsed with oil prices at $100 a barrel or more.
  
  These buffers are being exhausted every day that traffic through the Strait of Hormuz is nearly halted, and we are approaching the tipping point soon, analysts and industry officials warn.
  
  In the May monthly report, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said that global oil supply declined by a further 1.8 million bpd in April, taking total losses since February to 12.8 million bpd.
  
  “Mounting supply losses from the Strait of Hormuz are depleting global oil inventories at a record pace,” the IEA said, adding that observed global inventories, including oil on water, were drawn down by 250 million barrels over March and April, or by 4 million bpd.
  
  Demand destruction is certainly also keeping prices from spiking to record levels, but this could soon remain the only buffer that could cap price gains.
  
  Inventories are set to reach “rock bottom” within weeks, and the paper market could catch up with the worst supply disruption in history.
  
  In the United States, stocks of crude and petroleum products had plunged to 1.53 billion barrels as of May 29, per EIA data, the lowest level in weekly ending stocks since 2004.
  
  U.S. gasoline inventories are plummeting, and so are inventories at Cushing, the delivery point for WTI futures.
  
  Many traders choose to ignore warnings from analysts and from the chief executives of both Chevron and Exxon that inventories are so low that oil prices are weeks away from spiking if traffic through Hormuz remains mostly choked.
  
  “We're approaching unheard of inventory levels. I mean, really, really low levels,” Neil Chapman, Exxon’s Senior Vice President, said at the Bernstein 42nd Annual Strategic Decisions Conference at the end of May.
  
  “I think dated Brent, most people with a model would say dated Brent will shoot up once you get to that really low inventory level, up to $150, $160 — the models would tell you that.”
  
  Chevron’s CEO Mike Wirth said on the same conference, “The buffers and the shock absorbers are being steadily drawn down and the ability for the market to absorb this imbalance is drastically diminished today versus where we started and over the next few weeks, we're likely to see those pressures flow through more directly to physical prices, and there's more upward pressure that I would expect as we get into June and certainly into July.”
  
  Unknown
  
  With inventories depleting at a record pace, demand destruction could soon remain the only shock absorber, insufficient to stop an oil price spike within weeks without at least a partially normal resumption of traffic at Hormuz.
  
  The biggest unknowns are whether the U.S. and Iran could achieve a breakthrough in negotiations after months of impasse, and when China will return to the market. Beijing in May started tapping its huge reserves, keeping price gains limited.
  
  The global, including Chinese, stock draws are finite and the futures market could soon start to reflect the true magnitude of the supply loss, against traders’ stubborn hopes of an imminent peace deal. Source: Oilprice.com
- 2026-06-10
  The Clock Is Ticking Down To Iraq’s Economic Disaster On 27 July
  OPEC’s second-largest oil producer, Iraq, has less than two months before it loses the key means to export its crude, with the agreement to move its product through two pipelines into Turkey expiring on 27 July. These routes have become vital to Iraq’s... Read more OPEC’s second-largest oil producer, Iraq, has less than two months before it loses the key means to export its crude, with the agreement to move its product through two pipelines into Turkey expiring on 27 July. These routes have become vital to Iraq’s ability to monetise its oil flows since the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz from 28 February. Up until then, around 95% of Iraq’s crude was shipped through that route to key export destinations in Asia, including China. The blockade of the Strait meant Iraq’s domestic oil storage tanks filled quickly to maximum capacity, and because it has very limited options for transporting its crude elsewhere, it has been forced to shut down production wells. The longer that goes on, the more likely it is to result in permanent damage to Iraq’s oil production through a loss of reservoir pressure, water infiltration, and corrosion, among other factors. For Iraq, this poses an existential risk, as over 90% of its annual budget historically still comes from oil. So, how has it come to this, and what are Iraq’s options now?
  
  The genesis of the current nightmare for Iraq lies in the March 2023 ruling by an international arbitration court that Turkey pay the Baghdad US$1.5 billion in damages for breaching the 1973 ‘Crude Oil Pipeline Agreement’. This resulted from Ankara allowing the semi-autonomous northern Iraqi region of Kurdistan’s government (the KRG), based in Erbil, to bypass the Baghdad-based Federal Government of Iraq (FGI) and export oil independently. According to a separate agreement struck between the FGI and the KRG in 2014, the KRG was obliged to send the oil produced in its region (around 550,000 barrels per day at the time) to the FGI for sale through the state-owned State Organization for Marketing of Oil. In exchange, the FGI would send the KRG a percentage of central budget revenues each month (about 17% at that point). The KRG was explicitly not allowed by the FGI to sell oil independent of this agreement, as Baghdad believed the potentially enormous income from this would be used by the KRG as a war chest to help secure the region’s full independence from Iraq, which was true, as fully analysed in my latest book on the new global oil market order. After the arbitration court’s verdict in Baghdad’s favour in March 2023, Turkey triggered a clause in the contract in July 2025, giving a mandatory one-year notice that it was terminating the 52-year-old pact permanently, effective as of 27 July 2026. With the Strait shut, April saw Iraq’s crude oil production fall to an average of 1.389 million barrels per day (bpd), compared to 3.47 million bpd from January 2002 to the end of March this year and over 4.1 million bpd in the three months leading up to 28 February. The last time oil production fell to the current level in Iraq was immediately following the 2003 U.S.-led invasion. In response, Baghdad began to move oil for export, however it could, mostly on tanker trucks overland. Iraq has since reached around 500 trucks per day (each truck contains, on average 200 to 250 barrels of oil).
  
  However, these volumes are nowhere near enough to ensure Baghdad’s economic survival, so at the same time, it has been working on the full repair of its old oil pipeline that ran from the disputed, federally-controlled Kirkuk province, adjacent to Iraq’s Kurdistan region to the Turkish port of Ceyhan. It ran northwest from the Kirkuk K1 field through federal territory (the Salahaddin and Nineveh provinces, near Mosul) up to the border town of Fishkhabur. This ‘original’ Kirkuk-Ceyhan Pipeline or Iraq-Turkey Pipeline (ITP) consisted of two pipes, which theoretically had a nameplate capacity of 1.6 million bpd combined and was split into 1.1 million bpd for the 46-inch (1,168-mm) diameter pipe and 500,000 bpd for the 40-inch (1,016-mm) line. This FGI-controlled pipeline’s export capacity reached between 250,000 and 400,000 bpd when running normally, but even before Islamic State entered the picture in 2014, the pipeline was subject to repeated and ongoing attacks by various Sunni militant groups operating in the region.
  
  Regardless of any peace deal between Iran and the U.S./Israel alliance, Baghdad is now pushing ahead with the Kirkuk-Nineveh pipeline as part of the Iraq-Turkey crude oil pipeline extending to Ceyhan Port on the Mediterranean Sea, which is independent of the KRG. Moreover, the Kirkuk-to-Nineveh line is not a standalone project, but rather is the vital northern leg of the rehabilitated federal network, proving the physical pipe required to carry oil around the KRG's territory and deliver it directly to the Fishkhabur border terminal. The 350,000-bpd design capacity of this Kirkuk-to-Nineveh segment reflects the Oil Ministry’s cautious, phased approach, as they cannot safely test the entire 1.6 million bpd nameplate capacity of the old system at once. Opening this 350,000-bpd pipeline allows Baghdad to easily handle the initial trial target of 150,000 to 250,000 bpd of Kirkuk crude next month. Moreover, once the southern Basra-to-Haditha corridor is built, it will plug into this newly opened Kirkuk-Nineveh-Fishkhabur line, creating a seamless, high-volume flow from the Persian Gulf to Turkey -- at least, that is the idea. On the other side of the regional power balance equation, ever since problems emerged with the FGI’s pipeline, the KRG has continued to maintain its own single-track pipeline, from the Taq Taq field through Khurmala, which joins the Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline in the border town of Fishkhabur. This had a nameplate capacity of 700,000 bpd, which was then increased to 1 million bpd, although it has so far reached only 900,000 bpd.
  
  The problem for both the KRG and FGI is that both these pipelines are covered by the 1973 treaty with Turkey, with both due to be shut down on 27 July, unless a deal can be reached with Ankara. But the Turks are well aware of the exceptionally strong hand it now holds in such talks and are pressing for “every possible concession it can think of”, a senior energy source who works closely with Iraq’s Oil Ministry exclusively told OilPrice.com over the weekend. “It’s asked for a multi-layered joint ventures across the energy sector -- with the onus on Iraqi investment -- in oil, gas, petrochemicals, and electricity, and has demanded that an arrangement is made that offsets the entire US$1.5 billion that it was fined by the arbitration court and technically still owes Baghdad,” he added. “Additionally, it [Turkey] wants a huge hike in the fixed tariff [currently US$1.00 and US$1.25] on each barrel of oil pumped through the Baghdad-controlled pipeline and it wants Iraq to commit to a high, continuous daily volume [hundreds of thousands of barrels per day] through the pipeline, with one-for-one fines if that volume is not fully used,” he underlined.
  
  All of which brings us to what pressure and to what end the superpower backers of each side -- the West in terms of the KRG, and China and Russia for the FGI -- will try to exert on Turkey, and Ankara’s dealings with both sides have historically been most diplomatically characterised as ‘fluid’. Despite its NATO status, Turkey routinely defies Western foreign policy, with a prime example being its purchase of Russian S-400 missile defence systems, which led to Washington kicking Turkey out of the F-35 fighter jet program. More recently, Turkey used its NATO veto power as leverage before finally allowing Finland and Sweden to join the alliance. It is tolerated in NATO for its crucial geostrategic position between the West and the East, controlling the Turkish Straits (Bosporus and Dardanelles), which is the only maritime gateway out for Russia’s Black Sea fleet. Then again, Turkey and Russia are historical rivals who have backed opposite sides in conflicts like Syria, Libya, and Azerbaijan, and Turkey regards the KRG-controlled northern Iraq region as a breeding ground for the Kurdish terrorist organisations operating across the mainland. It may instead be that Turkey ultimately goes the way that best benefits itself, which includes the signing of the multi-layered agreements mentioned earlier, and which also happens to benefit China. This is because one of these key deals that Turkey is pushing for is the ‘Strategic Development Road Project’, as also fully analysed in my latest book on the new global oil market order. This US$17 billion project will not just link Iraq to Turkey westwards but will backlink eastwards to China’s ‘Belt and Road Initiative’. This, in turn, will create a seamless transport corridor running from Iraq’s flagship deepwater Al Faw Grand Port (due to be finished with Chinese help this year) in its key oil export hub of Basra in the Persian Gulf, all the way through several of its biggest oil and gas fields, and finally into Fishkabur on the Iraqi border with Turkey. From there, it will extend via road and railway links into the rest of Europe. Source: Oilprice.com
- 2026-06-10
  Why Argentina’s Shale Boom Matters for Global Energy Markets
  Argentina’s epic unconventional oil boom is going from strength to strength. At the end of 2024, South America’s third-largest economy emerged as the continent’s fourth-largest oil producer. After production faltered at the end of 2025, output bounced... Read more Argentina’s epic unconventional oil boom is going from strength to strength. At the end of 2024, South America’s third-largest economy emerged as the continent’s fourth-largest oil producer. After production faltered at the end of 2025, output bounced back to near record levels at a crucial time for world energy markets. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz is impacting global oil supply, triggering a price shock that could push vulnerable economies into recession. The 8.6-million-acre Vaca Muerta shale will make Argentina a global energy powerhouse.
  
  Government data shows that for April 2026, Argentina lifted a record 881,809 barrels of crude oil per day. This was not only 1.4% higher than a month prior but represents a notable 19% increase over a year earlier. This solid increase in petroleum production is attributable to the strong growth of unconventional oil output from the Vaca Muerta shale, which hit an all-time high during April 2026 of 618,849 barrels per day. As a result, shale oil now makes up over 70% of Argentina’s total petroleum output, the highest proportion ever.
  
  Natural gas production also recovered during April 2026, hitting a nine-month high of nearly five billion cubic feet per day. This is 1.4% higher month over month and a 1.5% greater than the same period a year earlier. This growth couldn’t come at a more critical time for Argentina and South America. Global natural gas supplies are constrained because of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and Iran’s strikes on Qatar’s liquefied natural gas infrastructure. Those events took roughly one-fifth of global LNG supply off the market.
  
  There are fears that the resulting price shocks could trigger recessions in many natural gas-dependent economies, particularly in Europe. This will also sharply impact many countries in South America, particularly those like Colombia, which are dependent on importing natural gas. Indeed, severe shortages of the fossil fuel have impacted Colombia, Peru, and Argentina in recent years, underscoring the importance of Buenos Aires’ shale oil and gas boom. Regional shortages of the fossil fuel are exacerbated by the structural decline of Trinidad and Tobago’s hydrocarbon sector, where production is rapidly crumbling.
  
  The latest data shows Argentina remains on track to become a leading South American oil and natural gas producer. National oil company YPF is the primary driver of the massive unconventional hydrocarbon boom underway in Argentina. The driller, which President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner nationalized in 2012, is responsible for around 32% of Argentina’s oil output and 27% of natural gas production. Pan American Energy, which is 50% owned by supermajor BP, is the second largest oil producer, with local independent driller Vista Energy in third place.
  
  In addition to being the largest hydrocarbon producer, YPF holds the most acreage in the 8.6-million-acre Vaca Muerta, which is often compared to Texas’s Eagle Ford shale. Indeed, the geological formation possesses many characteristics that are superior to U.S. shale plays, including the prolific Permian shale. Argentina’s state-controlled energy company is still in the early stages of developing the Vaca Muerta, which, as the world’s fourth largest shale oil deposit and second largest shale gas repository, possesses considerable hydrocarbon potential.
  
  YPF intends to become a pure shale operator with a strategy in place to exit legacy conventional oil assets, all of which are mature fields that are becoming increasingly costly to operate. The driller recently announced it will join President Javier Milei’s Large Investment Incentive Regime (RIGI), which aims to advance economic development through attracting substantial long-term capital to Argentina. The driller will invest $25 billion over 15 years to expand its Vaca Muerta footprint by drilling 1,152 wells, thereby significantly boosting production.
  
  This, along with YPF budgeting nearly $40 billion from 2025 to 2030 to develop operations, including $6 billion during 2026 alone, will advance the company’s plans to become a pure shale oil and natural gas producer. Indeed, YPF will direct most of that capital to develop its unconventional hydrocarbon acreage in the Vaca Muerta. This will significantly expand production, with YPF projecting output of 2.1 million barrels of oil equivalent per day by 2030, a 130% increase over 2026. That will be comprised of 820,000 barrels of oil and 6.1 million cubic feet of natural gas.
  
  YPF’s strong forecast production growth will give Argentina’s overall hydrocarbon output a solid lift at a crucial time for the country’s crisis-prone economy. President Milei, a self-confessed anarcho-capitalist, is focused on stabilizing Argentina’s economy and substantially boosting gross domestic product (GDP). A key plank of his strategy is to substantially lift oil and natural gas production by developing the Vaca Muerta. This will lift energy exports, improve Argentina’s trade balance, boost fiscal revenues, and drive GDP growth while creating a regional energy powerhouse.
  
  After Milei took office, investment in Argentina’s oil sector surged, with Vaca Muerta attracting most of the capital. This is underscored by a marked uptick in the development of major infrastructure projects as well as exploration and production activities since 2024. It is the U.S. and European countries, rather than China, who are now investing in the Vaca Muerta. Foreign energy investment will keep soaring with Milei easing capital controls and taxation while working to relax foreign ownership rules, making Argentina a more business-friendly jurisdiction for foreign companies.
  
  The Vaca Muerta’s high-quality light sweet crude, with an API gravity of 39 to 42 degrees and sulfur content below 0.5%, makes the geological body attractive to energy companies. This is strengthened by the formation’s low operating expenses, with YPF reporting shale oil lifting costs of just $4 per barrel. Indeed, the Vaca Muerta’s breakeven cost of $36 to $45 per barrel is lower than that of many U.S. shale plays. As more infrastructure is developed, breakeven costs will fall further, improving the profitability of the hydrocarbon-rich formation.
  
  These advantages are reinforced by Vaca Muerta’s low carbon emissions per barrel of oil produced. YPF estimates that 12 kilograms of carbon are emitted for every barrel it lifts in the shale acreage. This is less than the global average of 18 kilograms and far lower than many other oil-producing regions in South America. That is lower than Colombia, where heavy sour crude produces up to 25 kilograms of carbon per barrel, and far below Venezuela, where emissions can reach 1,460 kilograms per barrel. This is a key attribute in a low-emission world, where oil companies face growing pressure to reduce their carbon footprint.
  
  The Vaca Muerta has emerged as the world's most important non-U.S. shale play. It possesses the potential to make Argentina a top South American hydrocarbon producer and exporter. Milei’s economic reforms are bolstering Argentina’s attractiveness as a destination for foreign energy investment. For the reasons discussed, oil and natural gas production in the Vaca Muerta will continue growing at a solid clip. This will lift Argentina’s oil production to at least one million barrels per day by the end of this decade. Source: Oilprice.com

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