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MABUX ARA LNG Bunker Index
Port LNG$/mton MGO LS$/mton Date
ARA
1 617.00
+168.00
1 505.00
+5.00
Sep 14
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Port	LNG$/mton	MGO LS$/mton	Date
ARA	1 617.00	+168.00	1 505.00	+5.00	Sep 14

MABUX Global Bunker Index

380HSFO$/mton		VLS FO$/mton		MGO LS$/mton		Date
717.32	+1.18	876.16	+2.33	1 585.80	+7.38	Sep 17

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MABUX Market Differential Index (MDI)

Correlation between market bunker prices (MBP) and MABUX Digital Bunker Price Benchmark (DBP)

All Indexes in $/mton	380HSFO			VLS FO			MGO LS			Date
All Indexes in $/mton	MBP Index	DBP Index	MDI	MBP Index	DBP Index	MDI	MBP Index	DBP Index	MDI	Date
Rotterdam	625	729	-104	723	828	-105	1 505	1 692	-187	Sep 17
Singapore	760	770	-10	911	949	-38	1 460	1 685	-225	Sep 17
Fujairah	770	718	+52	1 015	888	+127	1 720	1 748	-28	Sep 17
Houston	535	734	-199	802	881	-79	1 515	1 659	-144	Sep 17

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Latest News
- 2026-09-17
  StanChart Sees Higher Oil Floor as Hormuz Crisis Spreads to Saudi Export Routes
  Oil prices pulled back but remained elevated ahead of a critical Fed decision on Wednesday, with market expectations shifting towards a prolonged US-Iran conflict. Brent crude for November delivery fell 2.88% at 2:18 p.m. ET, to trade at $105.6 per barrel,... Read more Oil prices pulled back but remained elevated ahead of a critical Fed decision on Wednesday, with market expectations shifting towards a prolonged US-Iran conflict. Brent crude for November delivery fell 2.88% at 2:18 p.m. ET, to trade at $105.6 per barrel, while WTI crude for October delivery declined 3.33% to change hands at $102.3/bbl. The Federal Reserve raised interest rates by 25 basis points on Wednesday to a range of 3.75% to 4.00%, its first rate hike since 2023, as policymakers responded to renewed inflationary pressure. Fed officials also projected one additional rate increase before the end of the year. Higher interest rates generally act as a headwind on oil prices by cooling economic activity, boosting the value of the U.S. dollar and raising the cost of holding crude inventories. However, commodity analysts at Standard Chartered have predicted that the continuing US-Iran stalemate and increasing associated physical risks to regional exports will keep oil prices supported above a higher floor.
  
  The planned diplomatic meeting between Iran and Gulf Arab states regarding commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz was postponed on Tuesday, amid a lack of Arab consensus, dashing that near-term hope for a de-escalation.
  
  Last week, Iran-aligned Houthi forces in Yemen seized the strategic Red Sea port of Mocha and launched heavy drone and missile strikes against Saudi Arabia's King Khalid Air Base. Tensions spiked further after a drone strike from Iraq damaged a key pumping station on Saudi Arabia's East-West oil pipeline near Riyadh and Medina. Bahrain had already announced it would boycott the forum, saying regional security "cannot be preserved through a policy of appeasement" and citing the pipeline strike as proof that attacks on Gulf infrastructure remained an active threat. Saudi Arabia, whose own objections to the proposed wording of the meeting drove Oman to postpone it, did not attend either.
  
  Drone attacks have forced Saudi Arabia to shut its East-West crude pipeline, an important alternative export route that bypasses Hormuz.
  
  According to StanChart, the damage to the pipeline materially raises the near-term risk to crude exports, with the key bypass route to Yanbu now expected to remain largely out of service for several weeks. StanChart estimates that Saudi Arabia has only around one week of crude stocks at its ports to sustain exports at current rates, meaning a prolonged outage could force greater reliance on already-constrained routes through Hormuz and put a significant volume of export supply at risk. At the same time, the Houthi advance along Yemen’s Red Sea coast and around Bab el-Mandeb increases the risk to tanker transit through the Red Sea, potentially adding further war-risk insurance, freight and rerouting costs. The immediate implication is, therefore, not simply less crude availability, but a higher cost and lower reliability of moving Gulf barrels to market.
  
  Additionally, StanChart says the disruption exposes a deeper weakness in the market’s assumed supply optionality. The East-West pipeline was explicitly part of the solution to Hormuz
  
  risk, allowing Saudi crude to bypass the strait and reach the Red Sea. However, the pipeline itself is now vulnerable, while the alternative maritime route through the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb is also facing heightened geopolitical risk. In effect, the market has attempted to bypass one chokepoint only to discover that the alternative infrastructure and transit routes can create new concentrations of vulnerability. Pipelines, storage and alternative export terminals provide flexibility in normal conditions, but do not necessarily eliminate strategic risk when parties in the underlying conflict can target the infrastructure itself.
  
  With disruption risk now affecting both Hormuz-linked flows and alternative export infrastructure, StanChart says the geopolitical risk premium is likely to remain elevated, with oil price moves continuing to be punctuated by sharp corrections on more constructive headlines.
  
  Meanwhile, Europe’s natural gas prices have also retreated from recent highs but remain close to 2022 highs amid supply concerns ahead of the winter heating season. Dutch TFF gas futures fell from a nearly 4-year high of €82.84/MWh achieved last week to trade at €77.66/MWh on Wednesday. However, StanChart says Europe’s gas markets remain bullish, with emerging competition between heating demand and storage injections likely to keep TTF gas prices supported even if temperatures remain relatively mild. According to Gas Infrastructure Europe (GIE) data, Europe’s gas stores are currently ~68% full, 16.3 percentage points below the five-year seasonal average, with Qatari LNG export flows severely limited.
  
  Among EU countries, Germany (~56% full) and the Netherlands (~52.5% full) have the lowest inventories. Germany’s Economy Minister Katherina Reiche recently expanded the autumn market tender for Long Term Options (LTOs), offering financial incentives to encourage global traders to secure and redirect gas deliveries into the country. Meanwhile, state-controlled giants Uniper and SEFE have agreed to overlook seasonal low gas prices and aggressively inject fresh gas into their storage networks.
  
  Source: Oilprice.com
- 2026-09-17
  Leaked EU Draft Would Scrap Hydrogen Mandates for EU-Wide Target
  A leaked European Commission impact assessment working document for the upcoming Renewable Energy Directive, RED IV, signals a potentially significant shift in renewable fuels policy after 2030. The draft's "preferred pacage" would replace binding national... Read more A leaked European Commission impact assessment working document for the upcoming Renewable Energy Directive, RED IV, signals a potentially significant shift in renewable fuels policy after 2030. The draft's "preferred pacage" would replace binding national renewable hydrogen mandates with a more flexible EU-wide target, while giving greater room to crop-based biofuels and favoring advanced biofuels made from European feedstocks. The direction suggests that energy security, cost and national flexibility are gaining weight alongside emissions reduction, although the measures remain subject to change before the Commission publishes its formal proposal.
  
  For hydrogen, the working document outlines three policy pathways for the post-2030 period. RED III currently anchors demand through binding national mandates, including a renewable fuels of non-biological origin (RFNBOs) target of 1% in transport by 2030 and RFNBO shares of 42% in industry by 2030 and 60% by 2035. Under the preferred RED IV option, these obligations would be replaced by an indicative EU-wide renewable hydrogen consumption target for industry and refineries of 8 million tonnes. The assessment describes the 8 million tonnes as the “average optimal level for the period covered by the policy,” which industry reporting has interpreted as the annual consumption by 2040. The preferred pathway envisages hydrogen credits and downstream demand incentives, which would need to be implemented through other legislation.
  
  Rystad Energy’s base case sees total EU green hydrogen demand reaching 9.5 million tonnes by 2040. If the draft’s 8 million tonnes figure is interpreted as annual consumption in 2040, it would represent a large share of total forecast demand, particularly given that the indicative target applies only to industry and refineries. This suggests that the headline volume itself may be less important than the question of how the target would ultimately be delivered.
  
  “For Europe’s hydrogen market, the prospect of replacing binding national obligations adds another layer of policy uncertainty at a time when projects still depend heavily on long-term demand visibility to secure offtake and reach final investment decisions. Production, infrastructure, and demand need to develop in parallel, and greater flexibility could help concentrate production in lower-cost regions. However, if long-term demand signals remain strong in only a few member states, the market risks developing in separate pockets rather than as an integrated European market. The key question is therefore whether the final framework can provide sufficiently strong and durable mechanisms to support demand if binding national obligations are replaced.”
  - Frederick Andre Wessel, Product Manager of Hydrogen Research, Rystad Energy
  
  For biofuels, the draft points in a more supportive direction, reflecting a stronger focus on energy security. A common 7% EU ceiling for crop-based biofuels could increase eligible conventional biofuel volumes by around 30% compared with the 2020 basis used in the assessment, while advanced biofuels produced from EU-sourced feedstocks could receive preferential treatment through multipliers. This would support efforts to reduce import dependence: the EU imported around 1.8 million tonnes of hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) last year and more than half of its sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) supply.
  
  The picture is less straightforward for advanced biofuels, as the draft assumes the existing combined transport minimum for advanced biofuels and RFNBOs expires after 2030, leaving demand more dependent on national policy. Stricter certification requirements could restrict some imported fuels and feedstocks, improving the competitive position of European producers. Overall, the draft points to diverging implications across renewable fuels: weaker policy certainty for hydrogen, but potentially stronger support for biofuels linked to domestic European resources.
  
  Source: Oilprice.com
- 2026-09-17
  MABUX: Global bunker market may continue irregular changes on Sep. 17 amid persistent concerns over Middle East supply disruptio
  The MABUX World Bunker Index — a composite benchmark reflecting daily prices for 380 HSFO, VLSFO, and MGO – moved sideways on Sep. 16, showing no sustainable trend: 380 HSFO: USD/MT: 716.14 (-2.37) VLSFO: USD/MT: 873.83 (-0.30) MGO: USD/MT: 1 578.42... Read more The MABUX World Bunker Index — a composite benchmark reflecting daily prices for 380 HSFO, VLSFO, and MGO – moved sideways on Sep. 16, showing no sustainable trend:
  
  380 HSFO: USD/MT: 716.14 (-2.37)
  VLSFO: USD/MT: 873.83 (-0.30)
  MGO: USD/MT: 1 578.42 (+14.68)
  
  As of Sep. 16, the MABUX Market Differential Index (MDI), which measures the spread between Market Bunker Prices (MBP) and the MABUX Digital Bunker Benchmark (DBP), showed the following trends across the four major global bunkering hubs—Rotterdam, Singapore, Fujairah, and Houston:
  
  • HSFO segment: Fujairah remained the only overvalued port, although its MDI premium narrowed by $12. The other three hubs remained undervalued, with MDI discounts widening by $19 in Rotterdam, $22 in Singapore and $31 in Houston. Undervaluation in both Rotterdam and Houston exceeded the $100 mark.
  
  • VLSFO segment: Fujairah continued to be the only overvalued port, although its MDI premium narrowed by another $15, falling below the $100 threshold. The other three hubs remained undervalued, with MDI discounts widening by $25 in Rotterdam, $24 in Singapore and $37 in Houston. Houston’s undervaluation exceeded the $100 mark.
  
  • MGO LS segment: All four ports remained undervalued. MDI discounts widened sharply by $72 in Rotterdam, $76 in Singapore, $74 in Fujairah and $79 in Houston. Undervaluation in Rotterdam, Singapore and Houston remained above the $100 threshold.
  
  MABUX expects the global bunker market to maintain irregular price dynamics on Sep. 17. Persistent concerns over potential supply disruptions in the Middle East are likely to sustain elevated market volatility, while limiting the scope for a downward correction:
  380 HSFO: plus-minus 5-10 USD/MT, VLSFO: plus-minus 5-15 USD/MT, MGO LS: plus-minus 5–20 USD/MT.
  Source: MABUX
- 2026-09-17
  Energy Shock Puts Bank of England Under Pressure to Raise Rates
  The Bank of England is facing mounting pressure to raise interest rates on Thursday amid a global bond market rout fuelled by concerns over runaway government borrowing and sticky inflation. Investors told Threadneedle Street it was “essential” to... Read more The Bank of England is facing mounting pressure to raise interest rates on Thursday amid a global bond market rout fuelled by concerns over runaway government borrowing and sticky inflation.
  
  Investors told Threadneedle Street it was “essential” to rein in prices before the energy shock triggered by the Iran war spreads through the economy and that failing to do so would risk the Bank “losing credibility”.
  
  Government bonds across the developed world have been swept up in a historic sell-off, as oil prices surged to multi-month highs the week four of the world’s largest central banks decide whether to hike interest rates.
  
  The yield on America’s 10-year Treasury – the benchmark for global debt markets – jumped above five per cent for the first time since 2007 in a sign of continued investor unease over the long-term path of inflation.
  
  But the UK’s sovereign debt, issued via bonds known as gilts, has been offloaded more aggressively than that of any other major economy, with both long-dated and short-dated securities unceremoniously dumped by traders. The 30-year gilt yield neared six per cent on Tuesday, its highest level since 1997, while shorter-term gilt prices now suggest the Bank will hike rates as many as four times in the next 12 months.
  
  “The recent gilt market movements seem to be intent on showing central banks they are out of time – the market is expecting action,” said Anthony Brinkman, high yield portfolio manager at Principle Asset Management. He added that investors would continue to charge a higher price for holding government debt if “the Bank of England doesn’t hike and fails to communicate its long-term trajectory in a convincing manner”.
  
  Energy price jumps fuel interest rate hike fears
  
  Earlier this week, Saudi Arabia shut down a vital pipeline responsible for carrying oil to the Red Sea, after it was hit in a drone attack. The strike came amid a dramatic re-escalation of tensions in the region, which has revived supply concerns in global energy markets.
  
  At $107 a barrel, Brent crude is now trading its highest level since May, while European natural gas prices are at highs not seen since the initial fallout from Russia’s Ukraine invasion.
  
  The spiking energy markets have reignited fears businesses will be forced to pass their higher costs onto consumers, pushing up prices across the economy despite there being considerable slack in Britain’s labour market.
  
  Persistent inflation is a blight on bond investors, whose real returns are eroded by price rises.
  
  Andrew Wishart, senior UK economist at Berenberg, warned the Bank of England it “must deliver” on previous promises to raise interest rates if the Iran war – or risk “losing credibility” and sparking a sell-off in the pound.
  
  “The cost of raising Bank rate by 25bp [a quarter of a per cent] is small compared to the risk to the Bank of England’s credibility from delay,” he said.
  
  Others argue that despite constant volatility in the bond market, the Monetary Policy Committee should leave interest rates on hold at a sixth consecutive meeting.
  
  “The Bank of England knows it cannot pump more gas into Europe,” James Carter, W1M’s co-head of fixed income. told City AM. “Its job is to stop the shock becoming embedded in wages and prices, and the evidence for that remains limited.”
  
  Earlier this week, the European Central Bank tightened monetary policy for the second time since 2023, warning that inflation from the Middle East conflict would “be longer lasting” than anticipated. The Federal Reserve is expected to do the same when America’s monetary authority meets on Wednesday. Source: Oilprice.com
- 2026-09-17
  Continental Strikes Venezuela Oil Deal with PDVSA
  Continental Resources signed a memorandum of understanding with Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA on Wednesday to operate and develop the Ayacucho 2 Block in the Orinoco Belt, the company announced, with an estimated 30 billion barrels of resource in... Read more Continental Resources signed a memorandum of understanding with Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA on Wednesday to operate and develop the Ayacucho 2 Block in the Orinoco Belt, the company announced, with an estimated 30 billion barrels of resource in place across roughly 126,000 acres in Anzoátegui state.
  
  The two sides intend to advance a long-term Contrato de Participación Productiva agreement in the coming weeks; once it's signed, Continental will operate the block with a 100% working interest.
  
  The deal is one in a flurry of deals following the Trump administration's call for American energy companies to help rebuild Venezuela's oil industry. CEO Doug Lawler called Ayacucho 2 "one of the most significant resource opportunities in Continental's nearly 60-year history," and Founder and Chairman Emeritus Harold Hamm said the agreement takes the company "to an entirely new level."
  
  Continental's deal comes shortly after Chevron's September 2 commitment of more than $7 billion over five years to roughly double its own Orinoco Belt output to 600,000 barrels a day, days after the Trump administration announced a 25-year deal targeting 1.5 million barrels a day across 17 Venezuelan oilfields. Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez said that the deal could generate more than $200 billion, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio putting near-term private investment at nearly $100 billion.
  
  Venezuela holds the world's largest proven crude reserves, but produced just 0.8% of global crude output that year, 742,000 barrels a day, a 70% decline from 2013 levels. Extracting the country's mostly extra-heavy Orinoco crude requires technical expertise international oil companies possess but have been largely barred from deploying under years of U.S. sanctions.
  
  Continental is the world's largest privately held oil and gas producer and it holds core U.S. positions in the Bakken, Anadarko, Powder River and Permian basins, also recently expanding into Argentina's Vaca Muerta shale and a joint venture in Turkey's Diyarbak?r Basin. Ayacucho 2 is its first foray into Venezuela.
  
  Also on Wednesday, Turkish firm Çan2 Termik's subsidiary Minerosol Group signed a separate 20-year agreement with PDVSA, taking over production at the CEMA field in Anzoátegui state under a $381.7 million investment plan. The field holds 104.2 million barrels of remaining oil reserves and 499.3 billion cubic feet of gas across 10 fields. Current output of about 400 barrels a day is targeted to rise to 9,865 barrels a day. Source: Oilprice.com
- 2026-09-17
  Equinor Targets 15 Million Tons of LNG as Qatar Exports Stay Blocked
  Equinor plans to expand its global LNG portfolio to between 10 million and 15 million tons a year in the early 2030s, targeting European and Asian buyers left short on supply by the Strait of Hormuz blockade, Reuters reported Wednesday. The company expects... Read more Equinor plans to expand its global LNG portfolio to between 10 million and 15 million tons a year in the early 2030s, targeting European and Asian buyers left short on supply by the Strait of Hormuz blockade, Reuters reported Wednesday. The company expects to announce a second Asian supply agreement this week, Equinor LNG vice president Ingvar Egeland said.
  
  The Hormuz passage normally carries about a fifth of global LNG supply, and the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran has blocked Qatar and the UAE from exporting most of theirs through it, pushing Asian buyers toward new sources.
  
  Equinor is "in dialogue with many counterparties, especially in India and also places in Southeast Asia," Reuters quoted Egelands saying, concentrating on state energy companies and fertilizer producers. The company signed a 15-year supply deal with India's Deepak Fertilizers and Petrochemicals Corp in May.
  
  Equinor lifted its first U.S. cargo from Cheniere's Sabine Pass terminal in August aboard the carrier Isabella, bound for Europe under long-term agreements signed with Cheniere in 2022 and 2023 that will supply roughly 3.5 million tons a year. Helle Østergaard Kristiansen, Equinor's senior vice president for gas and power, called it a milestone that strengthens the company's position as a reliable supplier. Equinor expects the U.S. volumes to help double its global LNG portfolio to 7 million tons annually by 2030. Norway's Hammerfest plant currently supplies half of its existing volumes.
  
  The push to 10-15 million tons in the early 2030s will draw on new supply from the U.S. East Coast, Canada's west coast, South America and African producers (excluding Tanzania's delayed project), and will include cargoes priced against Brent crude to diversify Equinor's pricing exposure.
  
  Equinor is pursuing a parallel expansion in oil production, targeting a 27% increase in international output to 950,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day by 2030, led by new production from the Gulf of Mexico, Brazil and Angola. Source: Oilprice.com
- 2026-09-17
  Russia Extends Diesel Export Ban Through October
  Russia will extend its ban on diesel exports for all fuel producers to October 31, Vedomosti reported Tuesday, citing delayed refinery maintenance and the need to rebuild fuel reserves before winter. The ban, expanded in July from traders and small refineries... Read more Russia will extend its ban on diesel exports for all fuel producers to October 31, Vedomosti reported Tuesday, citing delayed refinery maintenance and the need to rebuild fuel reserves before winter. The ban, expanded in July from traders and small refineries to cover all producers, had been due to expire September 30.
  
  Diesel on the St. Petersburg commodity exchange traded at 70,546 rubles a ton in early September, and retail prices reached 88.44 rubles a liter on September 7, up 18.4% since the start of the year. Russia's Energy Ministry said the current restrictions "may be adjusted" once supply volumes stabilize and reserves reach adequate levels, without naming a specific threshold.
  
  Russia's six largest diesel refineries account for roughly half the country's production, and three of them (Kirishi, Volgograd and NORSI) are now shut or running at about a quarter of capacity due to Ukrainian drone strikes. Kirishi is fully offline, Volgograd and NORSI are running near 25%, and Taneco was hit Sunday. Russian diesel exports fell below 1 million metric tons in June, down from roughly 2.5 million tons a month a year earlier, with Turkey and Brazil losing at least half their prior cargo allotments.
  
  U.S. President Donald Trump urged Ukraine on September 13 to stop "knocking out" Russian refineries, tying the strikes directly to U.S. pump prices. Energy analysts dispute the claim: a KSE Institute study puts Gulf-related export losses at 152 million barrels between March and August, more than double Russia's 68-million-barrel drop, and Russia's seaborne diesel exports account for roughly 4% of world trade.
  
  Diesel prices in the U.S. hit a record $6.27 a gallon on Tuesday, up about 80 cents in a month and up from $3.69 a year earlier, prompting the Senate's top Republican to say he's open to discussing a U.S. diesel export ban of his own. There is no real precedent for this in the U.S.. The crude oil export ban from 1975 to 2015 excluded diesel and gasoline, and refined-product exports have gone essentially unrestricted for decades. Rep. Ro Khanna has floated a separate Gasoline Export Ban Act in the House, and the White House denied any plans for either measure in August. Source: Oilprice.com
- 2026-09-17
  TTF Gas Hits $92.95 as Gulf Tensions Weigh on Energy Markets
  Europe’s benchmark natural gas prices held above the 80-euro mark early on Wednesday, staying close to 2022 highs, as low gas volumes in storage sites fuel concerns about winter supplies amid continued disruption and widening conflict in the Middle East. The... Read more Europe’s benchmark natural gas prices held above the 80-euro mark early on Wednesday, staying close to 2022 highs, as low gas volumes in storage sites fuel concerns about winter supplies amid continued disruption and widening conflict in the Middle East.
  
  The front-month price at the Dutch Title Transfer Facility (TTF), the benchmark for Europe’s gas trading, rose by 0.3% to $$92.95 (80.545 euros) per megawatt-hour (MWh) as of 9:15 a.m. in Amsterdam on Wednesday.
  
  Prices have held above the 80-euro per MWh threshold this week, after soaring by 6% on Monday, to hit the highest level since the 2022-2023 crisis.
  
  Gas prices in Europe, fresh off five consecutive weeks of weekly gains, continued their rally this week, as risks to supply of oil and gas in the Middle East materially increased over the weekend after Saudi Arabia shut down its key East-West oil pipeline that helps it bypass the Strait of Hormuz.
  
  Europe is heading into winter with one of the lowest levels of gas in storage in the past two decades as the war in the Middle East crippled LNG supply from Qatar, sent gas and LNG prices in Europe and Asia skyrocketing, and intensified competition for readily available global LNG cargoes that don't need to cross geopolitically charged chokepoints.
  
  Spot LNG prices in Northeast Asia have jumped by $2.70 from last week to $28.40 per million British thermal units (MMBtu) this week, as Energy Intelligence has assessed for prices for LNG deliveries one to two months ahead.
  
  “Escalation in the Middle East is deflating hopes of any imminent pick-up in LNG flows from the Persian Gulf. This leaves the global LNG market tight and vulnerable as we edge closer towards the northern hemisphere heating season,” ING's commodities strategists Warren Patterson and Ewa Manthey wrote in a note on Tuesday.
  
  “Moves in the JKM-TTF spread suggest that Europe should be pulling in spot cargoes. Despite this, the region will struggle to hit its lower storage target of 75% ahead of winter,” the strategists said. Source: Oilprice.com
- 2026-09-17
  Germany Weighs Market Incentives to Boost Record Low Gas Storage Level
  Germany is considering expanding a key market incentive to encourage traders to raise gas storage levels ahead of the winter, a government source told Reuters on Wednesday as German gas sites are barely half full at present. Europe’s biggest economy... Read more Germany is considering expanding a key market incentive to encourage traders to raise gas storage levels ahead of the winter, a government source told Reuters on Wednesday as German gas sites are barely half full at present.
  
  Europe’s biggest economy has the world’s fourth-largest natural gas storage capacity, but this capacity has been only 56% full as of the middle of September, according to data by Gas Infrastructure Europe.
  
  That’s a historically low level, the lowest in at least a decade and a half, as soaring natural gas prices amid the Middle East crisis have deepened the backwardation structure and discouraged holding supply for later deliveries. Backwardation is the market structure in which prompt contracts trade higher than those further out in time, signaling concerns about immediate supply.
  
  As a result of the low storage levels, Germany is risking gas shortages this winter if it turns out to be colder than previous years, the country’s gas storage association, INES, warned last week.
  
  Therefore, the German government is looking to use the existing market tool, the autumn tender for Long Term Options, or LTOs, on a larger scale.
  
  The tender is set to be increased by a yet-to-be-determined volume of gas, according to Reuters’ source.
  
  Germany would rather avoid direct state purchases of gas as it did in 2022, but has agreed with state-held energy firms Uniper and SEFE they would inject more gas into their storage facilities.
  
  Last week, industry association INES warned that refilling has “fallen significantly short of the required pace so far this year” and that “the window for sufficient refill is closing.”
  
  “While it is still technically possible to reach a storage level of around 77%, simply having storage capacities booked is not enough,” INES Managing Director Sebastian Heinermann said.
  
  “Filling storage facilities must be economically viable if market participants are to actually carry it out.”
  
  Source: Oilprice.com
- 2026-09-17
  U.S. Investigates Suspected Cyber Attacks on Texas-Bound Tankers
  U.S. Coast Guard and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents last month boarded tankers to probe suspected cyber attacks on the vessels bound for the U.S. Gulf Coast that allegedly took place while the ships were transiting the Strait of Gibraltar... Read more U.S. Coast Guard and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents last month boarded tankers to probe suspected cyber attacks on the vessels bound for the U.S. Gulf Coast that allegedly took place while the ships were transiting the Strait of Gibraltar between Morocco and Spain.
  
  A Coast Guard-led team that included FBI agents boarded an oil tanker in August before it could arrive at a U.S. port, the Coast Guard said this week.
  
  The cyber action teams examined the foreign-flagged vessel’s systems.
  
  “Currently, there are no reports of operational disruptions, vessel instability, physical danger to crews, or environmental impacts,” the Coast Guard said in a statement carried by CBS News.
  
  The Coast Guard and the FBI did not name either the tanker or whom they suspect of cyber attacks.
  
  At least two tankers are now under investigation over suspected cyber attacks that may have taken place in early August while the vessels were transiting the Strait of Gibraltar bound for the U.S. Gulf Coast, U.S. officials with knowledge of the incidents told the Wall Street Journal.
  
  The boarding and the inspection of the two foreign-flagged vessels “were designed to ensure integrity of the vessel’s operational and information technology systems following indications that the networks of both vessels were compromised,” according to statements by the Coast Guard and the FBI.
  
  The cyber action teams boarded the two vessels on August 21 and 24, the FBI said. One of these was carrying oil and the other one was shipping LNG.
  
  The incidents are raising concerns that either Iran or other U.S. adversaries have been trying to disrupt operations at a key chokepoint or a U.S. port and widen the Middle Eastern conflict, the U.S. officials told the Journal.
  
  The relevant U.S. authorities have not announced who they suspect could have been behind these cyberattacks. However, concerns are rising that malicious actors may be seeking to expand the conflict in the Middle East. Source: Oilprice.com

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