Vitol buys at least 25 million barrels of discounted Iraqi oil — OilPrice

In Iraq, trading company Vitol purchased at least 25 million barrels of oil for September loading. This made it the second-largest buyer of Iraqi crude after ADNOC, OilPrice reports.

Discounts for buyers

Iraq’s SOMO offered September oil cargoes at discounts of $15 to $20.80 per barrel to official selling prices. According to a tender document reviewed by Reuters, such terms were offered for September deliveries. Trading sources also said that some cargoes were sold at even deeper discounts.

According to Reuters, Vitol bought between 25 million and 30 million barrels of oil for September loading. ADNOC agreed to purchase another 40 million barrels in September after it was allocated 32 million barrels in August, of which the company actually took about 20 million barrels.

More current news is available on the UA.News Telegram channel Telegram.

Transportation problems

Iraq does not have a large tanker fleet of its own, and most of its oil is exported from southern terminals in the Persian Gulf. Tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remains significantly below pre-war levels, while freight costs have risen due to higher rates charged by shipowners for transportation in the region.

ADNOC transports oil from inside the Strait of Hormuz for subsequent resale through terminals in Fujairah and Sohar. Vitol, for its part, has one of the world’s largest oil trading and maritime transport networks.

Iraq’s exports from southern ports averaged 2.35 million barrels per day in August and rose to about 2.6 million barrels per day in September. Earlier this month, the country also began transporting southern oil by tanker trucks north to Kirkuk for export through the Turkish port of Ceyhan. During a test shipment, 209 tanker trucks delivered about 38,000 barrels over two days, while flows via the northern route amounted to about 200,000 barrels per day.