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Latest market news

Australia’s Qantas posts higher Jul-Dec jet fuel costs

  • Market: Biofuels, Oil products
  • 26/02/26

Australian carrier Qantas reported today that its July-December 2025 fuel costs were 3pc up on the year in its half-year results, but growth was less than capacity additions for the period.

Qantas' fuel expense for July-December 2025 was A$2.61bn ($1.86bn), slightly above its A$2.6bn guidance and up from A$2.54bn a year earlier.

But jet fuel prices were more favourable, leading to a net benefit for the airline, the firm said in its half-year report released on 26 February.

The figure was 2pc below the A$2.67bn reported in July-December 2023. The company expects its jet fuel expenditure to total about $A5.11bn for the year ending 30 June 2026, up from A$5bn in 2024-25, based on consumption of about 89,500 b/d and a price of A$125/bl. The forecast excludes hedging, into-plane costs, sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) premiums and carbon credit costs.

Qantas' jet fuel consumption for July-December was about 88,000 b/d, up from 85,000 b/d a year earlier. SAF purchases were 20mn litres, with Qantas expecting to meet a 1pc SAF target in 2025-26.

Most of Qantas' SAF refuelling has been at Los Angeles airport in the US, where SAF prices are typically the lowest. (See graph)

Qantas is also involved in the SAF-focused fund Saffa, which last month pledged to invest in Dubai-based sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) developer SAF One's planned Middle East plant, with first output expected in late 2028.

The company's July-December profit after tax was A$925mn, up from A$923mn in the prior corresponding period, while revenue rose to A$12.9bn from A$12.1bn a year earlier. Earnings were supported by growth in the carrier's more efficient Airbus A321F fleet, which Qantas said has increased its payload capacity and reduced fuel use.

Argus' jet-kerosine Singapore assessment was $92.65/bl on 25 February, down from $100.55/bl on 19 November.

By Tom Major and Tom Woodlock

Global SAF prices H2 2025 $/t
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25/02/26

Rubio calls for Caribbean energy ties despite tensions

Rubio calls for Caribbean energy ties despite tensions

Houston, 25 February (Argus) — US secretary of state Marco Rubio strongly defended the US intervention in Venezuela to a gathering of Caribbean nations today, also calling for stronger energy ties in the region in comments delivered as Cuba reported a firefight with a US-flagged vessel. "I will tell you this without any apology or without any apprehension: Venezuela is better off today than it was eight weeks ago," Rubio told members of the Caribbean Community (Caricom) on Wednesday in a summit in St Kitts and Nevis. Caricom has 15 members and six associate members, but does not include Cuba or Venezuela. The US will continue to drive for fair, democratic elections in Venezuela, Rubio said, after leaving it in the hands of collaborators of former President Nicolas Maduro, whom the US captured on 3 January. The initial priorities of preventing mass migration and spillover violence in the wake of Maduro's seizure were achieved, he said. More broadly in the region, the US hopes to help ensure economic development and better access to energy, Rubio said. "Many of the countries represented here today have energy resources that I know you seek to explore responsibly, safely, but in a way that generates wealth and prosperity for your people and your countries, and we want to be your partner in that regard," Rubio said. Cuba confrontation The Caribbean meeting came as Cuba reported on the same day that it killed four of 10 passengers on a Florida-flagged speedboat that invaded its territorial waters and opened fire on an approaching Cuban coast guard vessel. The coast guard shot back, also wounding six of the passengers who are now receiving medical care, the interior ministry said. "Cuba ratifies its will to protect its territorial waters," the ministry said. The US has not confirmed the incident but it is "a situation we're monitoring, hopefully it's not as bad as we fear it could be. But I can't say more," vice-president JD Vance said on Wednesday afternoon. The ship was about one nautical mile offshore from the city of Corralillo on the northern coast of Cuba, according to Cuba's account. It had a hull identification number of FL7726SH, Cuba said. This indicates it was not likely a military vessel, which Florida's boat registration authority lists as exempt from state titling. By Carla Bass Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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US to allow resale of Venezuelan oil to Cuba

25/02/26
News
25/02/26

US to allow resale of Venezuelan oil to Cuba

Washington, 25 February (Argus) — Washington will allow the sale of Venezuela-origin crude and refined products to Cuba via authorized intermediaries, US sanctions enforcers said Wednesday. The US Department of Treasury's sanctions enforcement arm, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), said it would approve applications from third parties looking to resell Venezuelan crude and products to Cuba, citing "the United States' support and solidarity for the Cuban people". The sales will have to conform to the same conditions as the US-authorized transactions with Venezuelan state-owned PdV, including a requirement to deposit sales revenue into a US-controlled bank account. But OFAC clarified that it could issue Cuba resale authorizations to non-US companies as well. OFAC limits direct purchases from PdV to "established US entities", meaning companies with established presence in the US on or before 29 January 2025. Cuba is facing drastically reduced access to crude and refined products following the US takeover of Venezuelan crude sales last month and pressure from Washington on Mexico to curb its state-owned Pemex's supply to the island. The Wednesday guidance from OFAC in practice would allow shipments of refined products only for select "humanitarian" purposes, as it bars sales to companies associated with the Cuban military, intelligence services or other government institutions. It is not clear if jet fuel sales to airports would fall into the allowed category. Cuba is also allowed to import crude and refined products from the US, subject to the same constraints on buyers. Such sales require authorization from the US Department of Commerce, rather than OFAC. By Haik Gugarats Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

News

German heating proposals 'jeopardise climate targets'

25/02/26
News
25/02/26

German heating proposals 'jeopardise climate targets'

Berlin, 25 February (Argus) — Germany's proposed new heating law will jeopardise the country's climate targets in the building sector, environmental groups and energy associations have warned. The law, proposed yesterday evening by ruling parties the CDU/CSU and SPD, would include a rising green gas or green oil quota, termed "bio-stairs", to enable households to stick with gas or oil heating systems. The so-called buildings modernisation act will ensure that "new heating systems will be predominantly CO2-free in future", the parties said. Economy and energy minister Katherina Reiche of the CDU said the proposals offer "free choice of heating" compared with the legislation that they will replace. The buildings energy act passed under the previous Greens-led economy ministry includes a mandatory 65pc renewables share for new heating systems. The proposed new rules call for a 1pc admixture of carbon-neutral fuels from 2028, with new gas and oil heating systems to use at least 10pc of the equivalent biofuel from 2029. The quota would then rise in three stages until 2040. The text mentions biomethane, hydrogen, synthetic fuels and bio-oil as potential fuels to meet the quotas. For hydrogen, it suggests an openness to various production pathways, specifically renewable hydrogen, hydrogen made from natural gas with carbon capture and storage or through pyrolysis, and waste-based hydrogen. The parties expect savings of 2mn t CO2 equivalent (CO2e) by 2030 through these measures. The CDU/CSU and SPD will present the final details of the proposed system in the summer, by which point they aim to have a government draft passed by parliament, with the law scheduled to enter force on 1 July. Existing funding programmes will continue until at least 2029. Critical thinking Environmental group DUH's managing director Barbara Metz said scrapping the 65pc renewables rule will make climate neutrality in the building sector "effectively unattainable". Metz flagged a recent high administrative court ruling calling for more climate action , particularly in the country's buildings and transport sectors. The CDU/CSU and SPD have stressed that the targets under Germany's climate action law will continue to apply. Should an evaluation in 2030 show that the building sector is not meeting its target, "corrective measures will be taken", they said. But allowing gas and "even" oil heating systems to be installed with initially "relatively low" biofuel content, while at the same time abolishing the 65pc requirement, would jeopardise Germany's climate targets, energy and water association BDEW managing director Kerstin Andreae said. And "ambitious" green fuel quotas will be needed to have an emissions-saving effect, but such high quotas will in turn drive up heating prices, penalising tenants in particular, think-tank Agora Energiewende's Julia Blaesius warned. Green fuels are "scarce" and it remains unclear how demand for them will develop, she said. The CDU/CSU and SPD paper argues that gas and oil suppliers already offer tariffs with an organic component. And the carbon price under Germany's domestic carbon market — expected to be replaced by the future EU emissions trading system for the buildings and transport sectors (ETS 2) from 2028 — does not apply to the climate-friendly fuel component, which will have a cost-cutting effect, they said. Germany's buildings sector emitted around 109mn t CO2e last year, according to federal environment office UBA. By Chloe Jardine Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

News

South Korea approves Hyundai Chemical, Lotte merger

25/02/26
News
25/02/26

South Korea approves Hyundai Chemical, Lotte merger

Singapore, 25 February (Argus) — South Korea's trade, industry and resource ministry (Motir) has approved chemical producers Hyundai Chemical and Lotte Chemical Daesan's restructuring plans along with a support package on 25 February. Hyundai Chemical and Lotte Chemical jointly applied to merge their plants in November 2025 . Hyundai Chemical is a joint venture between Hyundai Oilbank and Lotte Chemical. This is the first project approved under South Korea's government-led rationalisation efforts across the Daesan, Ulsan and Yeosu petrochemical complexes. These efforts were in response to the industry's prolonged losses since 2021, driven by rapid capacity expansions, particularly in China. Under the approved plans, Lotte Chemical will merge its Daesan petrochemical plant with Hyundai Chemical, integrating the naphtha cracking centre (NCC) and downstream units. Parent companies Lotte Chemical and Hyundai Oilbank will invest 600bn Korean won ($420mn) each and will share equal ownership of the newly integrated corporation. The restructuring is expected to take three years, during which Lotte Chemical will suspend its 1.1mn t/yr ethylene cracker in Daesan, and reduce operations of low-profit downstream facilities to curb oversupply in the Daesan petrochemical complex. The newly integrated corporation aims to focus on producing higher value-added and eco-friendly products instead of general-purpose products, Motir said. The South Korean government will also provide a customised support package worth W2.1 trillion, which will include financial, taxation, regulatory, cost structure improvement, employment, and technology development assistance for the firms' restructuring implementation. But the specific financial measures are to be finalised by the Korean Development Bank after consultations with institutional creditors. Other key producers including YNCC, GS Caltex, LG Chem, S-Oil, SKGC, and KPIC also submitted their business restructuring proposals in December 2025, and are under government review. The submitted plans would meet the collective target to reduce the nation's naphtha cracking capacity by 2.7mn-3.7mn t, according to the ministry. But revisions to the plans have been requested, and finalised drafts for restructuring plans for the Yeosu and Ulsan petrochemical complexes are expected by the end of the first quarter of 2026, said market sources close to South Korean cracker operators. By Angie Liew Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

News

Med gasoline market diverges from northwest Europe

24/02/26
News
24/02/26

Med gasoline market diverges from northwest Europe

London, 24 February (Argus) — The Mediterranean gasoline market is diverging from northwest Europe as heavier refinery maintenance in the region weighs on supply, market participants said. Several Mediterranean fluid catalytic cracker (FCC) units are under maintenance, traders said. Work includes Helleniq Energy's 146,500 b/d Aspropyrgos refinery in Greece and Eni's 241,000 b/d Milazzo refinery in Italy. Helleniq confirmed late last year that Aspropyrgos would undergo a February–March turnaround. Sources said earlier this month that maintenance at Milazzo includes shutting down the FCC for the first time in six years. It is unclear whether the current work is planned or unplanned. Milazzo has also faced recent unplanned FCC issues, sources said. Refinery maintenance in northwest Europe is comparatively light, a European analyst said. Crude distillation unit (CDU) and FCC capacity currently offline — planned and unplanned — is near the lower end of the 2018-25 range. Tighter supply in the Mediterranean has supported balance-of-February Mediterranean swaps, which have traded at a slight premium to March Mediterranean oxy swaps since 19 February, according to gasoline brokers. A backwardated structure is unusual for this time of year. The market is normally in contango during winter, reflecting soft prompt demand for winter grades and the higher blending costs for summer grades from March–April. Backwardation is likely to persist to the end of February as cargo offers thin out, a Mediterranean trader said, although they added that the February–March spread is "massively overdone". West Mediterranean cargoes are trading at a $4–9/t discount to front-month March Mediterranean oxy swaps, the trader said. In northwest Europe, February balance-of-month Eurobob oxy swaps were trading at a $4.75/t discount to March equivalents on 23 February, swap brokers said — compared with a $1/t premium in the Mediterranean. Stronger Mediterranean cargo values have improved arbitrage economics to move gasoline from Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp (ARA) to west Mediterranean ports. The incentive to move a 30,000t cargo rose over the last four sessions to $16.61/t at the close on 23 February, according to Argus calculations. Consultancy Insights Global reported consistent loadings from independent ARA gasoline tanks in recent weeks. ARA-to-west-Mediterranean arrivals are likely to increase in March, the Mediterranean trader said. By George Maher-Bonnett Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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