Petroleum coke
Overview
Used in the manufacturing of metals, for power generation and in the production of numerous other products including glass, paint and fertilizers, petcoke is widely used. As the energy transition drives markets around the world to search for ways to reduce carbon emissions, the outlook for Petroleum coke remains uncertain.
Gain transparency into the evolving international petcoke markets with weekly and monthly prices, expert analysis and global market-moving news for fuel-grade and anode-grade petroleum coke.
Latest petroleum coke news
Browse the latest market moving news on the global petcoke industry.
US Gulf fob 6.5pc sulphur petroleum coke rebounds
US Gulf fob 6.5pc sulphur petroleum coke rebounds
Houston, 20 July (Argus) — The fob US Gulf 6.5pc sulphur petroleum coke price rebounded to a six-week high last week following a handful of deals concluded in the high $70s/metric tonne (t) to low $80s/t. At the same time, however, rising freight costs following renewed hostilities between the US and Iran are keeping pressure on fob netbacks. The Argus fob 6.5pc sulphur assessment increased by $3/t on the week of 15 July to $78/t, the highest price for this grade since 3 June, and which was the largest week-on-week increase in the assessment since 11 March, shortly after the US-Israel war on Iran first began, when the price jumped by $9/t. Interest in US-origin coke may have risen because of concerns about a more extended lack of Saudi Arabian supply in the market. But sentiment as to market direction continues to vary widely. While some deals were done at significantly higher levels last week, other trades continued to close in the mid-$70s/t, even for some higher-quality grades. One refinery was heard to have sold at $75/t last week, $4/t lower than the sales price for a high-sulphur August-loading 50,000t cargo from another US Gulf refinery. A trader sold a cargo of 5.3pc sulphur dry-basis coke to the Mediterranean also at a netback in the mid-$70s/t. And offers to a Central American buyer were heard in the mid-$70s/t as well. Mid-sulphur premium shrinks The fob 4.5pc sulphur coke assessment also rose during the week but only by 50¢/t, which eroded its premium to 6.5pc sulphur coke to $3.50/t. This was down from $6/t a week earlier and the narrowest spread between the two grades since late-July 2025. Increased production of this grade in the US Gulf may be contributing to the slower ascent and recently pressured the 4.5pc sulphur price to a four-month low. The jump in freight costs following the latest developments in the Middle East is putting additional pressure on fob levels. The US Gulf-to-west coast India freight rate hit on 15 July its highest level since assessments began in late 2023, reaching almost $61/t, although it has since dipped again in recent days. The US Gulf-to-China route peaked at $65.45/t on 15 July but was assessed at $63.60/t on 20 July, still higher than it had been prior to the end of the US-Iran ceasefire on 8 July. By Hadley Medlock Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Slow loading stalls Venezuelan coke exports
Slow loading stalls Venezuelan coke exports
Houston, 20 July (Argus) — Venezuelan petroleum coke exports remain lower than in previous years, six months after the US lifted sanctions on the country's oil industry, mainly because of ageing logistics at Venezuela's ports. Venezuela's coke exports totalled 983,000t in the first half of the year, down from 1.2mn t in the same period last year, according to preliminary data from ship tracking service Kpler. Exports last month were just 73,000t, down by 36pc from a year earlier and the lowest volume loaded from the country since November, when Kpler reported zero exports. Venezuela only loaded three coke vessels in June, Kpler data show. Two were loaded at the Jose port — a 45,500t cargo heading to China and a 16,100t vessel to Brazil. The third vessel was reported as loading 11,200t of petroleum coke at the La Estacada port on Lake Maracaibo after previously loading 11,200t at the Boca Grande Barge STS terminal and 16,500t at Port Arthur, Texas. But the Boca Grande terminal typically handles iron ore and La Estacada mainly coal, crude and other oil products. The third vessel unloaded in Poland in early July, which would mark the first time Venezuelan coke had shipped to a northern European buyer since the sanctions were imposed, assuming the cargo was in fact petroleum coke and not coal or another commodity. While Venezuelan coke exports were expected to broaden in 2026 following the US' sanctions wavier, the country has mainly continued loading supply for countries that maintained imports of the material after the US imposed sanctions in 2019, such as China, India and Brazil. So far in July, Kpler data show Venezuela has loaded one cargo for China and one for Brazil. Part of the reason for limited Venezuelan coke exports so far this year has been slow loading because of ageing port equipment. "The logistics have deteriorated so badly that they are only able to do one to two vessels a month," a trader said. One Venezuelan terminal currently takes around 15 days to load a single 50,000t cargo because of a lack of maintenance, he added. And a second port with a lower draught takes around 10 days to load a cargo. Some market participants have also suggested that Venezuela's stockpiles have now been depleted, leading to lower availability for export. But others are sceptical of this claim. Venezuela's state-owned PdV estimated Jose's stocks at more than 12mn t in June 2017 , with many market participants at the time reporting they could be twice or even three times that amount. Venezuela's total exports from 2017 through July 2026 totalled only 10.3mn t, according to Kpler. Tracking Venezuela's exports through official channels is challenging, since the government does not report export data. And although Kpler shows almost 700,000t of Venezuelan coke shipped to China between March 2025 and April 2026, Chinese customs data, currently available through June, show no Venezuelan coke imported since March 2025. The reason for the absence of Venezuelan coke in Chinese customs data is not clear. By Hadley Medlock and Lauren Masterson Venezuela green coke exports ’000t Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Mexican petroleum coke availability rises
Mexican petroleum coke availability rises
Houston, 9 July (Argus) — Petroleum coke availability from Mexican-state owned Pemex's 340,000 b/d Olmeca refinery at Dos Bocas has started to rise in recent weeks, according to market participants, after operational issues contributed to reduced exports from the refinery this year. Coke production at the Dos Bocas refinery, in Tabasco state, has risen to around 4,000-5,000 t/d, a source said. While this is still lower than normal production of around 5,500-7,000 t/d, it has increased from 3,000-3,500 t/d in recent months. The refinery is expected to load at least four cargoes in July and will likely export five cargoes/month in August onward, a couple of traders said. So far in July, Dos Bocas has loaded one 18,200t cargo, according to data from ship tracking service Kpler, although the data are preliminary and subject to correction. The destination of this vessel is not currently listed. Exports from the Dos Bocas refinery have totalled 826,300t so far this year, with January posting the lowest volume of loadings at 97,000t, Kpler data show. But many sources have reported lower export volumes. According to Mexico National Institute of Statistics and Geography data compiled by Global Trade Tracker (GTT), Mexico exported no coke in January-March. April-loading US coke exports to Mexico also jumped by 46pc from a month earlier, GTT shows, suggesting limited domestic supply generated higher demand for seaborne purchases. Several incidents may have contributed to lower exports from Dos Bocas so far this year. Shipments were first cut in January after fog and rainy weather disrupted loadings , and operational issues with a short conveyor belt to move coke onto vessels may have created further issues at this time. Pemex also reported two separate fires at Dos Bocas in March and April , the latter of which sources said might have damaged a coker. The lack of exports from Dos Bocas likely led Florida utility JEA to take two US Gulf-origin cargoes from Motiva's 640,500 b/d Port Arthur refinery in April and June . JEA was able to take advantage of the extended Jones Act wavier, which allows movement of energy products between US ports on ships that are not US-built, crewed and flagged. The increase in Mexican coke availability could provide some competition for US-origin high-sulphur supply, and demand has recently increased for the material, a trader said. Mexican coke has been offered to India and China in the past couple of weeks, and another source said some Turkish buyers have shown interest in this material. Mexican coke offers were last heard in the high-$60s/t on a fob basis. A rise in Mexican high-sulphur coke supply also comes as many US Gulf refiners have shifted to mid-sulphur coke production , tightening 6.5pc sulphur supply. While the recent US-Iran peace agreement was expected to eventually revive heavy sour Middle East crude flows to the US, which would produce more higher-sulphur supply, hostilities in the Middle East have now reignited , again blocking traffic through the strait of Hormuz. By Hadley Medlock Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Rising supply pressures mid-sulphur coke prices
Rising supply pressures mid-sulphur coke prices
Houston, 18 June (Argus) — The fob US Gulf coast 4.5pc sulphur petroleum coke price fell to a four-month low this week, pressured by a recent rise in US mid-sulphur coke production, according to market participants. A number of refineries across the US Gulf that typically produce high-sulphur coke, including Valero's 215,000 b/d St Charles refinery in Louisiana and Chevron's 365,500 b/d Pascagoula refinery in Mississippi, have now shifted to 4-5pc sulphur coke production, according to traders. This has led to a smaller differential between mid- and high-sulphur prices, one said. Fob US Gulf 4.5pc sulphur coke fell to $84/t in Argus ' assessment on 17 June, the lowest price for the grade since 14 January. The decline in mid-sulphur coke also narrowed its premium to the high-sulphur grade to $9/t from $12.50/t a week earlier. This is the smallest premium 4.5pc sulphur coke has held to 6.5pc sulphur since 18 March, when the spread was also $9/t. The higher availability of mid-sulphur coke and narrower premium on an fob basis meant more buyers in Turkey were choosing this quality over high-sulphur coke. At least three cargoes of 5.5pc sulphur dry basis coke were heard to have sold at prices netting back to the mid-to-high $70s/t on an fob basis during the week, and the cfr Turkey 5.5pc sulphur assessment declined by $5/t on the week to $118.50/t. This narrowed the spread between cfr Turkey 5.5pc and 6.5pc sulphur coke to $3/t, the smallest premium since 31 December. The recent rise in US mid-sulphur coke supply is likely in part because of higher Venezuelan crude shipments to the US. The US imported an estimated 565,000 b/d of Venezuelan crude last month, up from 118,000 b/d in May 2025, according to US Energy Information Administration data, with Valero, Phillips 66 and Chevron being the top recipients. Many refiners have looked to Venezuelan supply to replace crude from Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Kuwait, which has been unavailable for more than three months because of the war in the Middle East. Rising heavy sour crude prices across origins in March were also expected to weigh on US high-sulphur coke production. Prices of medium-to-heavy sour crude, which produces higher-sulphur coke, rose following back-and-forth strikes between the US, Israel and Iran, narrowing its discount to lighter crude. Refined product prices also increased around the same time, which may have encouraged US refiners to switch to lighter crude slates to maximise product production. But the recent US-Iran peace agreement could eventually revive flows of heavy sour Middle East crude to the US Gulf and may again raise high-sulphur coke production in the coming months. Still, vessel traffic through the strait of Hormuz may take several months to return to normal, according to shipbroker BRS, which could delay this shift. By Hadley Medlock Fob US Gulf petroleum coke prices $/t Cfr Turkey petroleum coke prices $/t Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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