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Australia extends subsidy plan for refiners to 2030
Australia extends subsidy plan for refiners to 2030
Sydney, 20 March (Argus) — Australia's federal government will extend its Fuel Security Services Payment (FSSP) programme, designed to keep its two remaining refineries open, while lowering the bar for the operators to access state subsidies. The scheme will keep Ampol's 109,000 b/d Lytton refinery in Brisbane, Queensland and Viva Energy's 120,000 b/d Geelong facility operating into the next decade, energy minister Chris Bowen said on 20 March. The FSSP was supposed to run until 2027, but will now be extended to 30 June 2030. The FSSP was introduced in 2021 and is designed to pay Ampol and Viva when refining becomes unprofitable. The scheme requires Ampol and Viva to commit to operating until at least 30 June 2027 in return for state subsidies of up to A1.8¢/litre paid when refinery margins drop to a floor A$7.30/bl ($5.17/bl). No payments are made if margins reach A$10.20/bl, as part of the A$2.3bn package of refinery upgrade and fuel storage funding. The A1.8¢/litre subsidy will not change but the point at which the refiners will now be eligible for support has been increased to A$15.90/bl, Viva and Ampol said, while the margin cap is now A$13/bl, up from A$7.30/bl. These changes come into effect on 20 March. Ampol has advised the government it now has the confidence to maintain full production and defer planned maintenance work, Bowen said, to increase output as supply chains continue to face strain due to the US-Iran war. Under the FSSP, two quarterly payments have been made, both to Viva, of A$12.4mn in July-September 2021 and A$25.1mn in the same quarter of 2024. Viva produced 99,000 b/d and Ampol produced 95,000 b/d in 2025, reporting refiner margins of $9.90/bl and A$10.34/bl respectively. The refiners rely on imports for most crude oil supply to their plants. Australia's domestic production dropped to 61,000 b/d in 2025 compared with 277,000 b/d in 2011. Typical sales levels for gasoline and diesel doubled in just 10 days during early March , but Canberra has resisted imposing rationing or sales restrictions and instead established a national fuel supply taskforce to produce a supply outlook. By Tom Major Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
US Jones Act waiver may alter PX trade flows
US Jones Act waiver may alter PX trade flows
Houston, 19 March (Argus) — The US' 60-day waiver of domestic shipping requirements under the Jones Act may change the trade flows of paraxylene (PX) and aromatic blendstock in the near-term, sending US Gulf coast production to US Atlantic coast consumers. PX consumers based on the US Atlantic coast (USAC) largely rely on imports from overseas for their needs. Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Brunei, the Netherlands, Taiwan and India were all sources of US PX imports before US-imposed tariffs starting last year shuffled the deck. Saudi Arabia has since become the majority PX trade partner, accounting for over 50pc of flows, according to US Census Bureau data compiled by Global Trade Tracker. But with the US-Iran war bringing vessel movement through the strait of Hormuz to a virtual halt, supplies have tightened for several products, including PX and feedstocks. This has boosted PX prices by $365.65/t since the war began on 28 February to $1,438.73/t on 13 March, according Argus' most recent weekly assessment. PX produced at the US Gulf coast (USGC) is typically consumed within that region, so shipping cargoes to USAC consumers has not been a factor in trade. But the rise of USGC 5211-grade MX since 28 February by 102¢/USG to 389.5¢/USG through 18 March — combined with the 60-day Jones Act waiver — may change that. Market sources tell Argus the higher prices and temporary removal of the higher costs associated with the Jones Act could prompt greater USGC PX production to ship to the Atlantic coast. The waiver could also boost shipments of USGC toluene and MX to the USAC for gasoline blending, another source said, although US blenders tend to prefer alkylate from Europe over reformate or aromatic blendstocks. Alkylate imports are exempt from US tariff policy because of their use in the energy sector. Benzene and styrene shipments will largely be unaffected by the Jones Act waiver because many of those consumers are tied in with refineries, pipelines or receive their volume from inland barges, another source said. By Jake Caldwell and Savanna Millhausen Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Brazil's MGO demand slumps due to export tax
Brazil's MGO demand slumps due to export tax
Sao Paulo, 19 March (Argus) — Demand for marine gasoil (MGO) in Brazilian ports has plummeted because the Brazilian government's implementation of a 50pc tax on diesel exports and its derivatives have made the product uneconomical to export. The tax, which took effect on 12 March , applies to MGO exports and sales in Brazilian ports to internationally flagged vessels. Since then, suppliers have described MGO demand as "non-existent", with participants mainly buying very-low-sulfur fuel oil (VLSFO). Even domestically flagged vessels have prioritized VLSFO for cabotage because of the higher price of MGO in Brazil. Disruption at the strait of Hormuz, through which 20pc of the world's oil typically flows, has strained the global oil supply. As a result, the Brazilian market is facing a shortage of diesel derivatives. The tax aims to retain product in the domestic market and contain price increases. Brazilian suppliers exporting MGO and gasoil to Africa and Europe have also reported that buyers cancelled volumes scheduled for the coming weeks. The 50pc tax makes Brazilian diesel much more expensive than international prices, a supplier said. Argus assessed MGO in Santos at $1,482/metric tonne (t) and at $1,541/t in Rio de Janeiro on 18 March. Those prices exclude the 50pc tax. By Gabriel Tassi Lara Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Physical NWE diesel cracks nearing record highs
Physical NWE diesel cracks nearing record highs
London, 19 March (Argus) — The premium for diesel cargoes loading from the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp (ARA) hub to North Sea Dated crude rose to the second-strongest on Argus ' records on 18 March, and its highest since the start of the war in the Middle East. Diesel cargoes on fob ARA basis settled at a $69.17/bl premium to North Sea Dated on 18 March. That is the second-highest premium that fob ARA cargoes have held against North Sea Dated on Argus ' records, with the highest premium of $70.10/bl reached on 18 October 2022 as Europe was cutting Russian product imports. Diesel refining margins have more than doubled since the start of the US-Iran war. Around 20pc of the EU and UK's imports last year passed through the strait of Hormuz, according to shiptracking service Vortexa. Iran's threat to attack Mideast Gulf energy infrastructure drove the rise in cracks, market participants said. And the country has made good on those threats overnight. State-owned QatarEnergy's Ras Laffan complex has sustained damage , although it was not immediately clear whether the refinery itself was directly attacked or sustained any damage. Drones hit refineries in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, including the 400,000 b/d Samref refinery at Yanbu on the Red Sea. Any disruption to operations at Yanbu would drive European diesel prices even higher, as it has remained a viable option for Saudi exports of diesel, having alone supplied around 15pc of the EU and UK's imports last year. The front month ice gasoil futures have continued to rise on Thursday, 19 March. Ice April gasoil traded at $1,347.75/t at 10:18 GMT, up by 7pc from the close on 18 March. Front-month Ice Brent futures rose by just under 7pc in the same period. Despite the surge in European diesel prices, volumes on the water that made it out of the Mideast Gulf before the war have partly muted price rises, market participants said. The last cargo of Mideast Gulf diesel to arrive into the ARA hub will be the STI Sloane , which will discharge around 10 April. One European diesel trader said they thought the European market is "starting to wake up". The key difference between disruption caused by the war in the Middle East compared with disruption caused by the conflict in Ukraine is that Mideast Gulf supplies are cut off from the global market, while Russian barrels were redistributed, a trader said. Backwardation across the Ice gasoil futures curve — where prompt prices exceed future prices —also surged so far on Thursday, 19 March. The front-month Ice gasoil futures held a $157/t premium to the second month futures at 10:18 GMT. If that structure holds to the close it would be the third- highest on Argus ' record. By Josh Michalowski Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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