West African Crude Oil Price Assessment

West African crude oil is traded on an FOB basis for loading at a wide range of terminals across the region.

Platts assessments by S&P Global Commodity Insights reflect the repeatable, transactable price of West African crude cargoes at 16:30 London time, for loading 25-55 days forwards, Monday through Friday.

Bids and offers always reflect standard industry norms and practice. All Platts West African crude is assessed on a Market on Close assessment process basis.

Other reliable information regarding bids, offers and trades in the West African market may be used in the price assessment process when appropriate, providing that it has been published to the market to enable it to be verified.

S&P Global Commodity Insights first launched a West African crude oil price assessment in 1984, with Nigeria’s Forcados. In the following years we added to its assessment portfolio, and by 2013 had brought the number of grades published to a total of 17 in three countries in the continent; Nigeria, Angola and the Republic of Congo.

Platts West African crude oil assessments by S&P Global were initially assessed 15-45 days forward, reflecting the typical loading window that buyers and sellers negotiated.

At the time, a great deal of Nigerian crude oil headed to the United States, and, to a lesser extent, Europe and Asia.

Angolan crude has for a number of years been part of Asia’s, and specifically China’s, staple diet – a trend that continues to this day. Demand for West African crude has changed over the years.

Demand from the US, once Nigeria’s biggest crude oil customer, began to dwindle around 2010 on the back of the US’ abundant supply of light, sweet shale oil, which has similar specifications to Nigerian production.

By 2013 and continuing into 2014, the US’ EIA reported months where the US imported no Nigerian crude at all, dropping from over 1 million b/d. Instead, India and Europe became key buyers of the crude oil.

Refiners’ buying patterns have also changed over the years; while many were satisfied with prompt supply in the late 20th Century, the 21st Century saw refiners increasingly begin to seek certainty of supply.

As such, crude oil trade began to occur further and further forward, with many Asian buyers seeking to purchase West African supply about two months ahead of delivery.

While this also tied into a lengthy voyage time from West Africa to Asia, the same trend was visible with refiners across the globe.

As such, in 2014 S&P Global widened the Platts assessment range reflected in its West African crude oil assessments to 25-55 days forward, enabling the assessment to capture current European and Asian buying patterns.