RTRS:Asia-Pacific Crude-Steady ahead of Indonesia tender
SINGAPORE, Aug 31 (Reuters) - Asia-Pacific crude market held
steady on Friday as most October cargoes were sold while traders
await the result of Indonesia's buy tender for price and demand
cues.
Trade remained slow for Indonesian crude on weak Japan
demand and a perception among end users that the Indonesia Crude
Price (ICP) was too high.
"Indonesian grades are very slow to move," a trader said,
adding that some September barrels are still unsold.
"Duri and Minas got to go down further," he said.
* TENDERS
- Surgutneftgaz offered five 730,000-barrel cargoes of ESPO
for loading on Oct. 8-12, 10-14, 17-21, 22-26 and Oct. 29-Nov.
2. The tender will close on Sept. 3.
- India's ONGC offered 700,000 barrels of Russian Sokol
crude for loading on Nov. 16-19 in a tender to close on Sept. 3
with bids valid until a day later.
* REFINERY
- Japanese refiner Nansei Sekiyu said oil refining
operations had resumed as scheduled at its 100,000 barrels per
day Nishihara refinery in Okinawa on Friday after a strong
typhoon brought heavy rain and strong wind from Saturday to
Monday.
- Japan's top oil refiner, JX Nippon Oil & Energy,
said on Friday it expects to restart operations of a 136,000
barrels per day (bpd) sole crude distillation unit (CDU) at the
Oita refinery in southwestern Japan by Monday or Tuesday, after
unplanned repair work.
- Japanese refiner Taiyo Oil Co Ltd said on Friday it would
build a 10,000 barrels per day TransAlkylation Unit (TAU) at its
120,000 bpd Shikoku refinery in western Japan for about 6
billion yen ($76 million).
- Libya's largest oil refinery, Ras Lanuf, has resumed
operating after shutting during the uprising that ousted Muammar
Gaddafi last year, traders said.
* MARKET NEWS
- Most oil and gas companies in the U.S. Gulf Coast region
on Thursday prepared to gradually restart installations there
following Hurricane Isaac, while one refinery reported flooding
and scrambled to prevent further damage.
- U.S. oil demand was weaker than expected in June, as fuel
consumption remained tepid compared to a year ago, the U.S.
government said.
CRUDE Price Prev Change
OCT Brent 113.23 112.99 +0.24
OCT Brent/Dubai EFS DUB-EFS-1M 3.28 3.43 -0.15
