SINGAPORE: Trade for Australian cargoes is set to pick up following the release of preliminary December loading programmes.
December-loading supplies of Australian heavy sweet crude are due to fall by around one million barrels from November as no Enfield will be available in December.
Supplies of heavy sweet Pyrenees will also fall to just one 550,000-barrel cargo in December, down from two similar-sized cargoes that are scheduled to load in November. The end December-loading cargo will be marketed by BHP Billiton.
Quadrant Energy will have a 350,000 barrel cargo of Van Gogh crude for loading in early December, while Mitsui will have a 550,000 barrel cargo of Vincent crude for Dec. 8-12 loading. Supplies of Van Gogh and Vincent crude are unchanged from November volumes.
On the regional ultra-light sweet crude market, December supplies of Australian Cossack are stable from November. Chevron will market the lone Dec. 21-25 650,000-barrel cargo of Cossack crude.
Woodside sold its November-loading Cossack crude this week at a slight discount to dated Brent, traders said. An oil major was likely to have bought the cargo, but this could not be directly confirmed.
The cargo was initially scheduled to load Nov. 5-9 but was delayed to Nov. 16-20 because of production issues, sources close to the matter said.
Market participants had expected Woodside's November Cossack to trade at deeper discounts because it was still available late in the November trading cycle and as light distillate refining margins weakened.
A start-up at Qatar's Ras Laffan 2 condensate splitter may have helped stem the fall in the grade's value as condensate and ultra-light crude supplies are seen tightening, traders said.
Chevron could this month start selling condensate produced at the Australian Gorgon gas field, trade sources said on Thursday.
The cargo is expected to be around 620,000 barrels large and could load in the first 10 days of December, traders said.
"We have not approved Gordon condensate at our condensate splitter yet," an official from an Asian condensate splitter said, adding that it would not be able to buy the grade until it was approved by the refinery.
Refiners are likely to end up buying the cargo as the new grade "has not been tried" yet, a Singapore-based trader said. Gorgon condensate production is expected to peak at 20,000 barrels per day as the Gorgon gas field produces dry gas.
Brent's premium to Dubai swaps, or Brent-Dubai Exchange of Futures for Swaps (EFS), was at $2.75 per barrel, down 6 cents for December.
REFINERY
Royal Dutch Shell said it remained fully committed to selling the majority of its stake in Japanese venture Showa Shell to refiner Idemitsu after the two Japanese entities announced a delay of a planned merger.
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