Argus Group Three RBOB
Argus recently launched a calculated assessment for reformulated gasoline in Group Three. This move comes following recent changes that were made in gasoline specifications for the Denver, Colorado, area in 2024.
Summertime conventional gasoline sales in Denver, Colorado ended on 7 November 2023 when the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) mandated reformulated gasoline for the metropolitan area during the summer season. The shift in specifications was first announced by the EPA ruling in November 2022 when it found the region was not meeting federal ozone standards. Reformulated gasoline burns cleaner than its conventional counterpart but is also a more expensive fuel to produce.
For the winter months, Denver gasoline prices will likely change little from years past. The Reid Vapor Pressure (RVP) levels for reformulated gasoline will likely closely mimic those seen in Group Three’s conventional gasoline market for the southern portion of the midcontinent.
But come summer – which is defined as 1 June through 15 September – Denver area retailers will be required to sell 7.4 RVP reformulated gasoline, as opposed to a prior requirement of 7.8 RVP conventional fuel. This is expected to widen Denver's premium to conventional prices in nearby regions.
Denver reformulated gasoline's premium to sub-octane gasoline prices in adjacent states such as Oklahoma and Kansas should be similar to spreads between Gulf coast CBOB and Gulf coast RBOB. Denver's reformulated gasoline supply will come from a combination of shipments from the midcontinent and Gulf coast markets, as well as from Suncor's 103,000 b/d refinery in nearby Commerce City, Colorado.
Group Three RBOB Methodology
Prices for Regular RBOB are published year-round for 10,000 bl on a fob Tulsa, Oklahoma basis.
Prices are calculated by applying the spread between the prompt Argus Regular Texas Destination RBOB and Regular Colonial CBOB from the US Gulf coast markets to the respective prompt Magellan suboctane V grade price. The use of the spread value mitigates the end-of-summer shift in Colonial RVP specifications.
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Author: Paul Dahlgren, Editor, Refined Products Americas – Gasoline Markets
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Houthis capture key city close to Bab el-Mandeb: Update
Houthis capture key city close to Bab el-Mandeb: Update
adds Houthi statement Antalya, 11 September (Argus) — Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels have captured the Red Sea port city of Mocha, UN special envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg said. The advance brings the group closer to the Bab el-Mandeb strait, a key outlet for Saudi oil exports to Asia since the US-Iran war disrupted shipments through the strait of Hormuz. The capture of Mocha gives the Houthis "a direct presence on the approaches to one of the world's most vital straits", Grundberg said. "This development is raising serious concerns within the international community about the threat to freedom of navigation." Mocha lies around 75km north of Bab el-Mandeb, the chokepoint linking the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. The offensive is part of Yemen's civil war, which re-erupted in July and pits the Houthis against Yemen's Saudi-backed government. Saudi Arabia has increasingly relied on its Red Sea export route since the US-Iran conflict disrupted shipping through the strait of Hormuz. Crude transported across the kingdom through the 7mn b/d East-West pipeline can load at Yanbu on the Red Sea coast without passing through Hormuz, although tankers heading from there to Asia must still transit Bab el-Mandeb. The Houthis have sought to disrupt the Bab el-Mandeb route by attacking Saudi oil tankers and targeting infrastructure including the East-West pipeline, facilities at Yanbu and the 400,000 b/d Jizan refinery. As a result, Saudi Red Sea oil exports through Bab el-Mandeb fell from almost 4mn b/d in June to just over 200,000 b/d in August, according to Kpler. Saudi Arabia is now seeking to send more Red Sea crude north through the Suez Canal and Egypt's Sumed pipeline, as well as through the strait of Hormuz. The scope for an immediate further decline in Saudi flows is limited, as shipments through Bab el-Mandeb have already fallen sharply before the capture of Mocha. The broader impact will depend on how other shipowners respond. The Houthis' military spokesman Yahya Saree has since issued a statement saying that the group had expelled Saudi-backed forces from six districts in the governorates of Taiz and Hodeidah, which are now "secure and stable." The port city of Mocha is part of Taiz. The Houthis have been pushing south along Yemen's western coast in recent days and appear to be seeking control of Dhubab and Perim island, which sits at the narrowest point of the Bab el-Mandeb strait. Analysts said the capture of territory around the chokepoint would allow the Houthis to disrupt shipping more easily and help Iran put further pressure on international shipping as part of the US-Iran war. But the Houthis have been saying their offensive is not aimed at constraining international shipping, and that maritime navigation remains safe for all vessels, except Saudi ships. "Maritime navigation remains safe for all companies ꟷ with the exception of Saudi vessels, which have previously been banned," Saree said, reaffirming its policy of "blockade for blockade" until what he described as the aggression against Yemen ends, and restrictions on the country are lifted. Mahdi al-Mashat, the head of the Houthis' executive body, the Supreme Political Council, said separately that "there is no source of danger to navigation security except from the reckless actions of the Saudi enemy." The group previously caused major disruption to shipping through the Bab el-Mandeb strait between 2023 and 2025 in solidarity with Palestinians during the Gaza war. By Aydin Calik and Nader Itayim Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Hormuz oil export losses near 2.8bn bl: IEA
Hormuz oil export losses near 2.8bn bl: IEA
Antalya, 11 September (Argus) — Nearly 2.8bn bl of oil exports have been lost through the strait of Hormuz since the US-Iran war began, but alternative supply, stock draws and lower demand have filled much of the gap, the IEA said today. Flows through the strait averaged 7.6mn b/d in August, around 13.1mn b/d below pre-war levels, the Paris-based agency estimated in its latest Oil Market Report (OMR). Exports through routes bypassing Hormuz have offset more than 500mn bl, or an average of 2.8mn b/d, of the losses since the conflict started. Combined exports from Saudi Arabia's Yanbu and the UAE's Fujairah rose from 4.1mn b/d in February to 7.8mn b/d in June, before Houthi attacks in the Red Sea cut flows to 5.5mn b/d in August. Increased production outside the Mideast Gulf from countries including the US, Brazil, Kazakhstan, Venezuela and Nigeria has offset a further 420mn bl of the cumulative losses, the IEA said. The rest of the deficit appears to have been absorbed by stock draws and lower demand. The IEA said global observed stocks were drawing at record rates and stood 507mn bl lower than before the start of the war. The agency puts cumulative global demand reductions since the start of the conflict at more than 1bn bl, driven by steep falls in China and the Middle East. It said apparent Chinese demand over the past six months was running around 1.7mn b/d below February levels, reflecting lower imports, refinery activity and product deliveries. The impasse in negotiations between the US and Iran has delayed the prospect of a normalisation of flows through the strait of Hormuz until next year, according to the IEA. The agency now assumes shipping through the strait will remain restricted throughout 2026. Fighting has escalated between the US and Iran in the Mideast Gulf and between Saudi Arabia and Yemen's Houthi rebels in the Red Sea in recent days. Global oil production fell by 1.6mn b/d on the month to 100.1mn b/d in August, with around 10mn b/d of Gulf output still shut in, the IEA said. Global supply is expected to fall by 5.7mn b/d on the year to 100.7mn b/d in 2026, with the supply forecast 1.3mn b/d lower than in last month's report. Production is forecast to rebound by 8mn b/d in 2027. The Paris-based agency forecasts global oil demand will fall by 2.5mn b/d to 102.5mn b/d in 2026, a decline around 940,000 b/d steeper than projected in the previous report, before recovering by 2.6mn b/d in 2027. Demand losses will be concentrated in middle distillates and petrochemical feedstocks, particularly in Asia. The IEA said disruptions to refined product exports from the Mideast Gulf and Russia had severely constrained diesel and gasoil availability and driven prices sharply higher. Global refinery throughputs reached a summer peak of 81.4mn b/d in August, up by 960,000 b/d on the month but still 4.2mn b/d below year-earlier levels, the IEA said. "Refining margins reached record levels in the Atlantic Basin in August, led by sharply higher diesel cracks, while surging freight rates weighed on Singapore profitability," it said. By Aydin Calik Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Polish supply boost to prolong bitumen surplus
Polish supply boost to prolong bitumen surplus
London, 10 September (Argus) — Central Europe's bitumen surplus could widen in the coming weeks as weak demand and a potential increase in Polish supply outweigh planned export cuts from the Czech Republic. The central European bitumen market has been slow to recover from its seasonal summer slowdown, leaving the region oversupplied. Higher output from Orlen's 373,000 b/d Plock refinery in Poland and Orlen subsidiary Unipetrol's 108,000 b/d Litvinov refinery in the Czech Republic over the past two months, supported by more consistent supplies of Middle Eastern sour crude, has added to inventories and weighed on domestic and export prices, according to market participants. Argus assessed Polish domestic truck prices at €530/t ex-works on 4 September, their lowest level since 13 March. Czech domestic truck prices were assessed at €545/t ex-works last week, their lowest level since 6 March. Product availability could increase further in the coming weeks following the start of planned maintenance at the Plock refinery on 2 September. Work on the refinery's crude distillation unit and hydrocracker is expected to increase the volume of vacuum residue available for bitumen production, according to a source familiar with the refinery's operations. A domestic Polish bitumen buyer said higher output could exacerbate an already oversupplied market and increase exports, particularly to Romania, Germany and Ukraine. Poland exported 83,000t in the first half of this year, compared with 100,000t in the same period of 2025 and 90,000t in January-June 2024, according to market participants. Any increase in Polish exports would help offset planned export curbs from Litvinov. The Czech refinery is reducing exports to ensure adequate supply to the domestic market as demand gradually recovers from the summer slowdown. By Navneet Vyasan Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
August was joint-hottest month on record: EU Copernicus
August was joint-hottest month on record: EU Copernicus
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