Argus Eurobob E10 Gasoline
Overview
Europe is moving to E10 as the standard for regular grade gasoline. Stay ahead of the curve by moving your gasoline pricing to Argus non-oxy (E10). As of, 1 January 2024, Argus has changed the Eurobob oxy (E5) index to a premium or discount to the non-oxy (E10) benchmark. The non-oxy (E10) price will continue to be based on a volume-weighted average of spot market transactions.
EU-wide targets driven from mandates such as the EU’s Renewable Energy Directive, have increased the need for ethanol-blended gasoline across Europe. In most European countries, gasoline must now contain either up to 5pc or 10pc ethanol. Due to its higher bioethanol content, E10 gasoline is being rolled out across more countries in Europe as a means for governments and companies to help meet greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions targets.
European gasoline is moving to E10
Elliot Radley, editor of Argus European Products, provides the tools and insight to navigate one of the biggest changes to the European gasoline market in over a decade.
Watch nowArgus Eurobob gasoline barge spread
European gasoline - E5 vs E10
Europe is moving to E10 gasoline usage, impacts will include the UK’s CO2 emissions cut by 750,000 t/yr, the equivalent to removing 350,000 cars off the road, and the use of E10 gasoline will reduce GHG emissions of a gasoline powered car by ~2%.
Key price assessments
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Argus Eurobob transition to E10
The Argus Eurobob oxy assessment is a diff to the Argus Eurobob non-oxy assessment. Get a detailed overview into this change and what’s to come.
Market reports - Oct 2023European gasoline has changed
The European gasoline market has changed to a predominantly E10 market, and Argus assessments are shifting from next year to reflect that change.
VideoEuropean gasoline is moving to E10
Elliot Radley, editor of Argus European Products, provides the tools and insight to navigate one of the biggest changes to the European gasoline market in over a decade.
Latest European gasoline news
Eurobob gasoline trade rises in November
Eurobob gasoline trade rises in November
London, 11 December (Argus) — Trade in Argus Eurobob gasoline barges was 231,300t in November, up by 17.5pc on the month driven by strong inland demand, particularly for the oxy-grade. Eurobob non-oxy gasoline barge trade fell by 22pc to 73,200t, but oxy gasoline barge trade rose by 54pc to 158,100t. The total was 42pc lower on the year. Northwest European gasoline margins to North Sea Dated crude remained unseasonably wide at an average of $10.70/bl in November, up from $6.32/bl in October and around $3.76/bl above the five-year average. Premiums were lower by 52¢/bl compared with November 2022, when the European market was affected French refining sector strikes and strong transatlantic demand. This November demand primarily stemmed from inland, with export demand lacklustre. Refinery outages and planned maintenance works were widespread in Germany, which tightened supply. Through the month, traders said that E5 supply — a finished grade gasoline for which oxy is the blendstock — was tight, particularly around parts of the Rhine river basin and in southern Germany. This pushed buyers to look towards the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp (ARA) hub to source gasoline, which supported margins and probably drove trade in the barge market. The largest buyer of Eurobob non-oxy barges in November was trading firm Varo at 54,000t. Varo was also the largest buyer in October at 36,000t. Mabanaft was November's second-largest buyer at 8,000t, followed by ExxonMobil at 5,000t and BMV Mineraloel at 4,200t. The largest seller of non-oxy barges in November was Shell at 39,000t. It was also the largest seller in October at 77,200. The second largest seller in November was BP at 15,100t, followed by Gunvor at 13,100t. The largest buyer of Eurobob oxy gasoline barges in November was Shell at 50,000t, up from 32,000t in October, when the firm was also the largest buyer. The second-largest buyer of Eurobob oxy barges in November was Varo at 31,000t. It bought just 9,000t in October. Litasco was the third largest buyer at 17,000t. TotalEnergies was the largest seller of oxy gasoline barges in November at 64,000t. It was also the largest seller in October at 77,000t. Glencore was the second-largest seller at 43,000t, followed by Trafigura and Gunvor which each sold 12,000t. By Atishya Nayak and Jonah Sweeney Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2023. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
European gasoline exports rise in October
European gasoline exports rise in October
London, 6 November (Argus) — European gasoline exports rose slightly in October compared with September, with higher shipments to Nigeria offsetting lower demand from the US. Around 4.13mn t of gasoline was exported from Europe last month, up by 1pc on September on a daily average basis but down by 18pc compared from October last year, according to Vortexa data. The month-on-month gain was driven by increased exports to west Africa, compensating for a drop in volumes bound for the US. The US was still the largest outlet for European gasoline exports in October, accounting for almost 950,000t of the total. But that marks a 25pc drop on a daily average basis compared with September and a 3pc fall from October 2022. Arbitrage economics for westbound transatlantic shipments were unworkable last month, according to traders, with second-month Rbob futures averaging an $8.61 discount to front-month Eurobob swaps, including the cost of freight and renewable volume obligations. The spread is a bellwether for transatlantic arbitrage viability. Exports to Nigeria surged on the month, reaching 608,000t, nearly two-and-a-half times more than September when exports slumped to their lowest since May 2020. Traders report firmer interest in summer-grade gasoline with a Reid vapour pressure (RVP) rating of 60 kpa in recent weeks, with arbitrage economics for west African blends more workable than for US or winter European grades. Exports to Nigeria were still 60pc lower than in October 2022, with demand at the pump falling sharply since Nigeria's gasoline subsidy was removed in May. Since then, buyers have had increasingly limited access to credit, which has made funding purchases trickier, according to traders. Some 328,000t of European gasoline was shipped to Libya in October, up by 15pc on the month on a daily average basis and by 4.5pc on the year. Saudi Arabia emerged as the fourth-largest recipient, taking 223,000t last month, an unusually high amount. Gasoline flows from Europe to Saudi Arabia were just 297,000t in the first nine months of the year. Regional refinery maintenance, including work on Saudi Arabia's 460,000 b/d Satorp refinery, as well as maintenance in India, which also supplies gasoline to Mideast Gulf, prompted the sharp spike in imports from Europe last month. Gasoline exports to Canada fell by 40pc on the month on a daily average basis and by 17pc on the year to 192,000t in October. The month-on-month decline was largely seasonal as Canada typically looks to Europe to source gasoline during the summer months when driving demand peaks. By Jonah Sweeney Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2023. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Eurobob gasoline barge traded volumes rise in October
Eurobob gasoline barge traded volumes rise in October
London, 2 November (Argus) — Trades in Argus Eurobob gasoline barges totalled 196,800t in October, up by 14pc on the month as trade in both oxy and non-oxy gasoline grades rebounded from multi-month lows in September. Volumes were lower by 13pc on the year. Eurobob non-oxy trade rose by 23pc to 93,800t, while oxy trade rose by 7pc to 103,400t. Non-oxy and oxy barge traded volumes were at six and seven month lows, respectively, in September. Northwest European gasoline prices fell to their lowest monthly average since before the summer, while margins to North Sea Dated crude narrowed to their lowest since December 2022. Eurobob oxy gasoline premiums to Dated averaged $6.32/bl, down from $21.24/bl in September, and far below the $17.96/bl premium last October when tight supply caused by industrial action in the French refining sector and a strong US pull buoyed northwest European crack spreads. The beginning of September typically signals the end of gasoline's peak seasonal demand. Demand for gasoline — domestically and for export — thinned from the middle of September, pressuring cracks to a 10-month low in mid-October . Demand re-emerged inland in the latter half of the month, but low Rhine water levels hindered the transit of product inland, allowing stocks to build in the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp (ARA) hub. Water levels increased towards the end of the month, allowing greater intakes, which supported margins and activity in the Eurobob barge market. The largest buyer of Eurobob non-oxy barges in October was Varo at 36,000t. Varo was also the largest buyer in September at 25,500t. TotalEnergies was the second largest buyer with 30,000t, followed by German firm Mabanaft at 9,200t. The largest seller of non-oxy barges in October was Shell at 77,200t, after being the second largest seller in September with 31,500t. The second largest seller in October was TotalEnergies at 8,000t — having been the largest seller in September with 35,800t — followed by Gunvor with 6,600t. The largest buyer of Eurobob oxy gasoline barges in October was Shell, with 32,000t. The firm did not buy oxy barges in the month prior. The second largest buyer was Glencore at 20,000t, closely followed by Trafigura with 19,000t. TotalEnergies was the largest seller of oxy gasoline in October, parting with 77,000t. The firm sold just 12,000t in the month prior. Shell was the second largest seller at 18,000t, followed by Gunvor with 6,000t. By Jonah Sweeney Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2023. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Liquidity on non-oxy gasoline derivatives increases
Liquidity on non-oxy gasoline derivatives increases
London, 1 November (Argus) — Liquidity in Eurobob non-oxy gasoline linked derivatives listed by the Intercontinental Exchange (Ice) increased in October, with exposure now spilling over into 2024. A 50,000t spread trade for Argus Eurobob non-oxy vs Argus Eurobob oxy occurred on 27 October on the January 2024 contract, as well as a 50,000t trade on the February 2024 contract the same day. That brought open interest on the 2024 forward curve to 130,000t, in addition to the 249,000t open interest for the remainder of 2023, meaning total open interest for the product stood at 379,000t as of 31 October, compared with just 107,000t as recently as the end of September. There was also 94,000t of open interest on the outright Argus Eurobob non-oxy futures contract at the end of the month. The rise in paper trading activity follows news that participants in the European market have begun agreeing deals for physical gasoline cargoes using Argus non-oxy assessments as a pricing basis — a change from oxy gasoline, which has traditionally formed the basis of pricing discussions. Much of the gasoline exported from European refineries is free of oxygenates — enabling the blending of ethanol in key export markets such as the US. With increased liquidity in the non-oxy derivatives market, export refineries and those that purchase from them are now more freely able to hedge using an instrument that closely matches the specification of gasoline that trades. Eurobob non-oxy is an unfinished gasoline blendstock used to make finished grade E10 gasoline, which contains up to 10pc ethanol. The share of E10 as a proportion of the wider gasoline mix continues to grow across Europe as biofuel mandates strengthen in an effort to meet increasing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction targets. Around 21 countries in Europe have introduced the higher ethanol blend, with Ireland, Norway and Austria the latest to roll out the grade in April. The latest data reveals that E10 sales in France made up 58pc of total gasoline sales in September . Germany — where both E5 and E10 are mandated — had E10 sales at 27pc of the total, up from 24pc in the same month last year, and 14pc in September 2020. Trade in the physical Eurobob non-oxy gasoline barge market has also risen sharply over the past four years. Non-oxy makes up around 48pc of total Eurobob traded volumes, up from 6pc in 2019, the first full year of a standalone non-oxy VWA price. To reflect this wide and increasing uptake, Argus announced in May — after a period of consultation and market feedback — that the Eurobob non-oxy price would become the key price in determining European gasoline value from 1 January 2024. The current benchmark assessment Eurobob oxy will move away from being a standalone volume-weighted average (VWA) price, to being assessed as a differential to the Eurobob non-oxy VWA. While the shift in trade in the physical market has been clear, the shift in paper trade has been slower. Open interest remains weighted towards Eurobob oxy with around 10.7mn t of open interest on the outright-value futures contract alone. But market participants expected non-oxy paper trade to rise from the fourth quarter, with the balance beginning to shift from oxy to non-oxy. More recently, traders have voiced views that trade could rise sharply from the new year once the transition takes effect. By Jonah Sweeney Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2023. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.