LONDON: North Sea Forties crude price differentials remained under pressure on Tuesday, with little buying interest and abundant March loading volumes given the onset of refinery maintenance.
Output from 12 of the main British and Norwegian crude streams tracked by Reuters is set to average 1.865 million barrels per day (bpd) in March, down about 1.4 percent from a revised 1.892 million bpd in February.
This dip was mainly due to the fact that March has three more days than February, and overall loading volumes are up month-on-month.
In addition, the Brent, Forties, Oseberg and Ekofisk (BFOE) streams will load 929,000 bpd in March, up from a revised 922,000 bpd in February.
Traders said demand seemed pretty polarised with interest limited to light, sweet crudes. "People do not want the Forties," one trader said.
European refiners increased their intake of crude feedstock by almost 7 percent year-on-year in January, according to data from industry monitor Euroilstock.
This reflected a period of strong refining margins, which have persisted into February. A Rotterdam-based refiner cracking Brent is currently making about $7.53 a barrel.
However, refinery maintenance season is gathering pace and is now muting demand for crude feedstock.
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