WSJ:2 North Sea Forties Crude March Cargoes Deferred To April -Trade
By Konstantin Rozhnov
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
LONDON (Dow Jones)--Two cargoes from the March loading program of North Sea Forties crude have been deferred to April, traders said Wednesday.
Forties crude is the main component of benchmark Brent, and supply disruptions tend to provide support to Forties prices and, as a result, Brent futures.
Cargoes F0323 and F0324 have been delayed by three days and will now load April 1-3 and April 2-4 respectively, the traders said.
The delays follow a string of cargo deferrals after a temporary output drop in January at the Nexen Inc. (NXY)-operated Buzzard oil field, the largest contributing to Forties crude oil, and some production issues at other fields.
In February Buzzard has been operating at normal rates, according to data published by BP PLC (BP).
Forties crude cargo differentials eased Tuesday, but remained at a healthy premium above physical benchmark Brent, with BP bidding for March cargoes at 70-75 cent premiums.
-By Konstantin Rozhnov, Dow Jones Newswires; +44 207 842 9956; konstantin.rozhnov@dowjones.com
