Oil Trader Trafigura Offers Russia’s Crude at a Record Discount

(Bloomberg) -- Trafigura Group offered to sell Russia's flagship Urals crude at another record discount, offering evidence that the country's barrels are still struggling to clear after its invasion of Ukraine.

The oil trading giant offered the cargo at a $22.70-a-barrel discount to Dated Brent, a benchmark for physical oil transactions globally. That surpassed the prior discount it offered by about $34. There were no bids. A mostly Kazakh oil that gets exported from a Russian terminal in the Black Sea also slumped.

Oil tanker companies have been reluctant to collect Russian crude since the invasion while they wait to see what final sanctions -- if any -- directly affect the country's sales of petroleum. That's caused freight costs to soar. With financing of cargoes more complicated, and some refineries looking for alternatives, traders are wary too.

“Even without a full-scale export ban, interest in Russian oil is precipitously declining,” said Tamas Varga, an analyst at brokerage PVM Oil Associates. “Call it a PR step, a logistical impossibility, or conviction of doing the right thing, sellers of Russian oil and other assets are unable to find buyers.”

Headline Brent oil futures soared as high as $119.84 at one stage on Thursday before giving up almost all their gains as the market tries to understand just how much Russian crude will be lost from the market.

As well as the weakness in Urals, Glencore offered to sell a consignment of CPC Blend crude at $9.10 a barrel below Dated Brent. The grade comes mostly from Kazakhstan's part of the Caspian Sea by pipeline to a Russian export terminal in the northeast Black Sea. It's largest discount since the coronavirus destroyed demand for the grade in early 2020.