Oman’s Ministry of Oil and Gas (MOG) sold a cargo of Oman blend crude via DME Auctions on Wednesday, achieving a strong premium above the Official Selling Price (OSP) which reflects the current strength of the Middle East crude oil market, particularly in Oman.
The 2-million-barrel cargo of October-loading Oman Blend crude was awarded at a premium of $0.20 per barrel over the October OSP. The DME Auction platform saw 22 participants take part in the auction with 21 active bids placed during the 2-minute period. The Oman OSP is calculated on a volume-weighted average of daily DME Oman Crude Oil (OQD) Marker Prices over the month.
Raid al Salami, Managing Director, DME, said: “Premium bids placed during the auction underline the high demand for Oman crude oil and other similar grades. This demand is further presented by the higher participation in the auction from many major global crude oil traders being able to participate in a transparent and real-time pricing mechanism.”
“The DME platform has auctioned 37.6 million barrels from 4 different grades including Oman Crude Oil, Basrah Light, Basrah Heavy and Kimanis. There are more than 60 buyers that are now registered on the DME Auctions platform showing the demand for such barrels,” he added.
DME is the premier international energy futures and commodities exchange in the Middle East. Launched in 2007, DME has rapidly grown into a globally relevant exchange. Its flagship Oman Crude Oil Futures Contract (DME Oman) contract is the largest physically delivered crude oil futures contract in the world. DME Oman is the world’s third crude oil benchmark and the sole benchmark for Oman and Dubai exported crude oil.
DME is a joint venture between Dubai Holding, Oman Investment Fund and CME Group. Global financial institutions and energy trading firms including Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley, Shell, Vitol and Concord Energy also hold equity stakes in the DME.
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