Certain blenders try to limit the range of finished lubricants being produced during November and December. For example, some operators may elect to produce engine oils whilst others may concentrate on electrical oils or hydraulic lubricants.

Blenders still need some stocks of finished products to be accommodate deliveries to customers during January and further into 2026. These quantities will be optimized over the year to provide a solid accounting base for each company.

Feedstock costs are up, and crude oil levels are holding so far, but base oil prices across the EMEA region are softening. Refinery inventories of API Group I oils have been building, driving producers to scour export markets for opportunities to move large quantities at prices above distillates.

However, current voyage economics are stacked against traders and sellers – to the point that European FOB numbers would have to be pitched below current VGO wholesale prices, an option that of course is unattractive to producers.

Across the regions, Group III prices remain buoyant as demand remains strong for these grades. This in spite of new production from Korea, Singapore and China hitting markets in India and the Middle East Gulf. Perhaps demand is encouraged by upcoming production increases in Saudi Arabia, the United States and Europe.

Group II price levels are mixed. In Europe selective discounting is taking place, and values are coming off highs established during 2025. European Group II prices have been higher than those in other regions, and some have argued that decreases there were overdue. Middle East Gulf Group II prices are keen but are so far holding up against a surge in available supplies from Singapore and South Korea. Large quantities have also been delivered from Yanbu, often as part of shipments also delivering to the West Coast of India.

As has been said here before, the Middle East Gulf region is rapidly shifting from traditional Group I to use of more premium base oils. Group II cargoes have figured highly in supplies from the U.S. Gulf of Mexico coast, which have been arriving into United Arab Emirates with increasing frequency.

South Africa and West Africa also show signs of shifting to premium base stocks. Witness Chevron’s previously reported plan to supply Group II to the Nigerian market, something that would have been unthinkable some time back.

Crude and Gas Oil Prices

Oil prices maintained their pricing positions during the past week, with both marker crudes rising by around $1 per barrel. Numerous analysts predict crude prices will weaken during the first half of 2026, but there are variations on by how much.

One scenario from a U.S. bank has dated deliveries of Brent crude falling to around $45 per barrel around the middle of next year, whilst another more bullish outlook predicts that crude will only fall to around $60. However, the consensus was, and still is, that crude prices will fall. 

Current crude and gas oil prices are as follows:
Dated deliveries of Brent crude: $64.40/bbl, January front month
West Texas Intermediate: $60.05/bbl, December front month
European low-sulfur gas oil: $745 per metric ton, December front month

Source: London ICE late Nov. 17

Europe

Inventories are increasing again, with sellers looking to export markets to complete sales of relatively large quantities of Group I grades. That poses a number of problems, though. The first is that a number of suppliers do not have the full range of Group I grades, but are heavily into light grades rather than heavy neutrals, with some reporting no availabilities of bright stock.

Another factor is that demand in regional markets is reportedly poor, and there is little to suggest a big uptick in purchases by the end of the year. Availabilities are adequate in most places, with only one or two pockets showing real demand. One is Hungary, where the fire at Mol’s refinery is taking a toll on supplies to regular and contracted customers.

Prices around Europe are softer, with discounts frequently being offered to buyers to encourage offtake of material. Many buyers have heard news of export offers at FOB levels not seen for a few years. These buyers are calling for domestic prices to fall in line with export offers, causing problems for refiners trying to maintain a base oil premium over distillates.

Around Europe, bright stock remains short and is only found in larger quantities at a limited number of locations. This grade maintains a large premium over light and heavy solvent neutrals.

Prices for solvent neutral grades are taken lower this week, particularly for export offers to markets such as West Africa and Turkey.

Group I

European API Group I Export Prices FOB
SN150: $660/t-$700 per metric ton
SN500: $720/t-$775/t
Bright stock 150: $1,175/t-$1,200/t

Northwestern Europe, FCA basis Antwerp-Rotterdam-Amsterdam
SN150: $820/t-$845/t
SN500: $895/t-$935/t
Bright stock 150: $1,275/t-$1,340/t

Eastern Europe. No prices advised due to ongoing unavailability of products

Pan-European, FOB/FCA basis
SN150: €675/t-€710/t
SN500/600: €745/t-€795/t
Bright stock 150: €1,120/t-€1,155/t

Pan-European prices are assessed on an aggregate basis from levels in Scandinavia, Poland, France, Germany, Benelux, Iberia, Italy, Greece and the United Kingdom

The euro/U.S. dollar exchange rate is quoted at $1,15385 on Monday 17th November 2025.

European Group II prices are clearly now under pressure, with various reasons for these base oils to be considered for lower selling numbers. The main reason is being cited as the considerable premium these grades still have versus other global regions. Also being brought into the argument is the differential between premium base oil prices and Group I levels, which have been eroded considerably over the past couple of months.

There is a difference however in demand for Group II base oils which appears to be holding relatively firm, even in the run-up to Christmas and the New Year.

Considerable  quantities of Group II base oils have been brought into the European markets from U.S. sources, with another couple of cargoes expected before the year end, going into Antwerp and Rotterdam.

Prices are maintained following reductions posted two weeks back, at least until the end of November.

Group II

Imports, FCA basis
110N: €875/t-€890/t
150N: €890/t
220N: €890/t-€905/t
600N: €990/t-€1,055/t

European producer, “posted” prices:
150N: €975/t
600N: €1,125/t

The numbers above are certainly subject to selective discounts, depending on buyer reputation and quantities purchased. Prices refer to a wide range of Group II base oils that can be sourced from within Europe, the U.S., the Red Sea and Asia-Pacific. Ranges refer to bulk shipments. Smaller quantities are being imported in flexi-tanks.

Group III base oils are experiencing strong demand, with few signs of this demand softening during November and December. Distributors are all singing from the same hymn sheet, stating that they are currently planning contract quantities for individual customers for next year and also planning the loading of cargoes from Middle East Gulf and Malaysia for European arrival.

Cargoes will continue to arrive into Europe from South Korea, possibly until Group III production is started in Saudi Arabia, after which fewer movements will come in from Korea. Increasing production will be crucial to the European Group III market, with additional barrels coming in from Saudi Arabia and the U.S., whilst new European production of Group III base oils will be forthcoming with the Shell refinery conversion in Germany.

The South Korean supplier that has been offering products at substantially lower numbers now appears to have brought their prices in line with those from other sources. Meanwhile price ranges for Group III oils with full slates of finished lubricant approvals are starting to move lower at the top of the ranges.

Group III

Partial slates of finished lube approvals, FCA Antwerp-Rotterdam-Amsterdam and Northwestern Europe
4 and 6 cSt: €1,165/t-€1,190/t
8 cSt: €1,125/t/t-€1,145/t

Full approvals, FCA hubs in Antwerp-Rotterdam-Amsterdam, Northwestern Europe and Spain
4 and 6 cSt: €1,610/t-€1,625/t
8 cSt: €1,655/t-€1,675/t

Products sold on a delivered basis are subject to transportation costs, which will be added to the prices above.

Prices for rerefined Group III are unchanged at €885/t-€920/t for 4 and 6 cSt, on an FCA basis ex Germany.

Baltic Sea

Domestic prices for Russian SN500 moved upwards by $10/t, and it was assumed that SN150 would also have risen by the same figure.

There has been no mention of export prices or export cargoes leaving the Baltic. This may owe partly to new U.S. sanctions on Lukoil and Rosneft, which limit the transfer of dollars between banks, such as those in the United Arab Emirates and Russia.

Russian base oils are still available and are being used by blending operations in some regions of the Baltic, with deliveries coming in by road tank wagons, cross-border from Russia and Belarus, in violation of European Union sanctions. Lukoil base oil cargoes used to emanate from the company’s Perm refinery, but rumors suggest all available petroleum products produced within Russian are being assigned to domestic markets.

Ukraine continues to use drones to strike Russian refineries by Ukraine, causing damage to production units and storage terminals. The latest news was that Novorossysk refinery and storage complex had been severely damaged, although no base oils are produced at this installation.

There are still rumors of Russian cargoes coming out of the Baltic for receivers at Apapa port in Nigeria, with offers made during the last few days in Lagos. From the CFR/CIF offers, the FOB numbers would be incredibly low, although similar levels were seen, until lately, in Turkey. There have been no reported Lukoil cargoes loaded for Gebze, Turkey.

Prices for Russian base oil exports remain as published previously.

Notional prices for Russian exports, FOB St. Petersburg/Vyborg
SN150: $625/t-$655/t
SN500: $660/t-$685/t

Black Sea & Turkey

Monday’s news was that a Russian drone struck a Turkish-flagged tanker and set it ablaze on Monday in southern Ukraine’s Odesa region, officials said, a day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a deal to import U.S. liquefied natural gas through the area. The MT Orinda was hit during the offloading of liquefied petroleum gas at Izmail port, Turkey’s Directorate for Maritime Affairs said. All 16 crew on board evacuated and no one was hurt, it said.

Russia has repeatedly used drones, missiles and artillery to batter the Odesa region, especially its Black Sea ports. There was no immediate Russian comment. Ukrainian officials didn’t comment specifically on the tanker, although regional military administration head Oleh Kiper said Russian drones attacked the Odesa region overnight and damaged energy and port infrastructure in several cities.

The attack sparked multiple fires and damaged an unspecified number of civilian vessels. Izmail lies on a Black Sea estuary and is one of a string of ports that are vital for Ukrainian imports and exports. With Russia also targeting Ukraine’s energy sector, Zelenskyy is trying to ensure gas and other energy imports that can help see his country through the approaching winter.

Authorities in Romania, meanwhile, ordered the evacuation of people and animals from two villages close to Izmail on the Romanian side of the border, saying the nature of the tanker’s cargo required such precaution.

No new Russian base oil cargoes have been seen or reported moving into Turkish ports, with local sources commenting that Russian base oils are no longer available and possibly are being re-routed to domestic customers experiencing supply chain interruptions due to Ukrainian drone strikes.

Rosneft’s last recorded CIF/CFR price levels were at $590/t for SN150 and $635/t for SN500, but these are no longer valid, and are only indicated for interest and the low levels of prices.

Turkish base oil prices are given as indications only and are maintained at historical levels because no new cargoes are reported to have arrived from Rosneft.

Group I

Historical prices for Lukoil imports, CIF/CFR Gebze
SN150: around $835/t
SN500: around $850/t

Historical prices, Rosneft and Bashneft, CIF/CFR Gebze
SN150: $590/t
SN500: $655/t

Tupras base oils:
Spindle oil: Tl 33,360.00/t plus VAT Tl 8,569.64/t
SN150: Tl 27,338.00/t plus VAT Tl 7,365.04/t
SN500: Tl 33,805.00/t plus VAT Tl 8,658.44/t
Bright stock: Tl 51,681.00/t plus VAT Tl 12,233.64/t

Sales incur a standard loading charge of Tl 9,487.20/t.

Group II, ex-works
110N and 220N, Russian origin: $975/t (from October, no current availabilities)
350N, blended or from alternative source: $1,135/t
150N, from Taiwan or Saudi Arabia: $1,020/t
500N/600N, from Taiwan or Saudi Arabia: $1,240/t

Group III

Partly-approved
Tatneft 4 cst, FCA: €796/t (available for resale)

Fully-approved
From Spain, CIF Gemlik: €1,695/t-€1,725/t

Middle East

There have been a number of multi-directional cargoes loading on vessels out of Yanbu and Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The large cargoes of around 18,000 tons in total are mainly bound for the West Coast of India and the UAE, but there have been some small parcels loaded for Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania; Aqaba, Jordan; Alexandria; and Port Sudan, Sudan.

Group II base oils have been delivered to receivers in Singapore, and this supply appears to be a regular voyage with the same vessels returning to reload after a period of time.

Group I and Group II base oil deliveries into the UAE are starting to slow, with only two cargoes this month. One parcel arrived from Thailand, and the other originated in Ulsan, South Korea, and may have been a Group II cargo.

Hamriyah locals still report delays to tankers arriving to discharge cargo at the port, although the number of vessels has decreased from the peak seen a couple months ago.

European sellers are still investigating exports to the UAE, but economics are weighted against shipments to the area, due to higher freights and longer voyage times going around Africa’s southern tip.

UAE sources said there have been few base oil cargoes loading from Bandar-e Emam Khomeyni, explaining that Group I base oils are being delivered by road through Iraq into Syria as an alternative Amarket.

Large quantities of rubber process oils are exported from Iran to Indian receivers in Mumbai anchorage or Haldia port. A total of 13,000 tons of RPO from Iran was delivered during October to a number of Indian buyers who are dependent on Iran for supplies of this product. Although not specifically a base oil, RPO is an important export for Iran, with traders taking deliveries into Ras al Khaimah, UAE, and then selling into India or South Korea.

No Russian cargoes have arrived into the UAE, reinforcing the probability that base oils produced in Russia are being allocated to local domestic markets.

Prices for base oils imported into the UAE are unchanged this week.

Group I, CIF/CFR UAE ports
SN150: $885/t-$920/t
SN500: $940/t-$965/t
Bright stock: $1,220/t-$1,245/t

Group I cargoes are purchased from traders based in the U.S. and Europe, some of whom have representation in the UAE.

Group II, FCA RTW, UAE and Oman
110N, 150N and 220N: $1,285/t-$1,325/t
600N: $1,395/t-$1,420/t

Group II base oils imported into the UAE from a number of sources, including the Red Sea, the U.S., South Korea and Singapore, are being resold FCA UAE or on a truck-delivered basis throughout UAE and Oman. Deliveries are made through local distributors purchasing base oils directly from Luberef in Saudi Arabia, and from U.S. and Far East majors and traders.

The high ends of the ranges refer to material being delivered by RTW around the UAE and into northern Oman.

Group III, FCA Hamriyah RTW in UAE and Oman
4 cSt: $1,225/t
6 cSt: $1,235/t
8 cSt: $1,255/t

Middle East Gulf Group III base oils produced in Al Ruwais, UAE, and Sitra, Bahrain, are delivered by sea into Hamriyah, Jebel Ali, UAE. These base oils are offered for resale through the appointed distributors. The ranges of prices above include a reseller margin of around $90/t to cover storage, handling and margins. RTW deliveries from distributors can incur an additional charge of $20/t-$55/t, depending on delivery location and quantity.

Group III oils from UAE and Bahrain are also exported to markets around the world. Netbacks for Group III base oils loaded ex Sitra and Al Ruwais for distributor sales in Europe, the U.S., India and China are unchanged at $1,045/t-$1,075/t for 4, 6 and 8 cSt grades. Netback levels may indicate FOB prices.

Netbacks for gas-to-liquids Group III+ base oils ex Ras Laffan, Qatar, remain at $1,085/t-$1,100/t. Levels are indications only since there are no distributors involved. There have been further news of large cargoes reported leaving Qatar for Singapore, Rayong, Bangladesh, and ports along the U.S. Gulf coast during September and October.

Middle East Gulf Group III netbacks are assessed using selling prices in known markets minus estimated marketing costs, margins, handling, storage and freight.

Africa

A cargo of 3,000 tons of bright stock loaded out of Yanbu during the first half of November and will arrive into Alexandria in Egypt during the latter part of this month.

This report has succeeded in identifying a vessel delivering base oils into Dar-es-Salaam. Dar-es-Salaam is being supplied from Yanbu and Jeddah.

A stand-alone cargo of around 10,000 tons Group I base oils has loaded from Fawley, U.K., and will deliver 5,000 tons of SN150, SN500 and BS 150 into Tema, Ghana. The remaining amount will be discharged between Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire, and Conakry, Guinea.

Russian prices are still doing the rounds in Nigeria, but it is unclear if any Russian cargoes can be arranged under the current scenario in the Baltic or Azov. One trader was previously able to lift Russian barrels from Turkey and bridge these base oils through Egypt, but there is no news of another cargo coming into Apapa from this trader.  The last cargo arrived during September.

Nigeria has had a number of base oil cargoes discharging during the past few weeks. One cargo of 10,000 tons has been purchased by a European trader from Phillips 66 ex U.S. Gulf coast, and should have been discharged last week. Another cargo loaded from PBF on the U.S. East Coast, with 10,000 tons of SN150, SN500 and SN900. A 6,000-ton cargo loaded out of another U.S. Gulf source.

There are few available barrels around the U.S. market, with some traders looking at European supplies, but no moves have yet occurred. Supplies from the Red Sea are uneconomic and unworkable with difficult freight and vessel fixtures. It is hard to see where else could source cargoes for West Africa.

Offered numbers remain at $925/t-$940/t for SN500 and $1,000/t-$1,120/t for SN900, on a CFR basis Apapa.

The black market exchange rate for the Nigerian naira was NGN 1,440 to the dollar Monday.

Group I, CFR Apapa
Russian origin (if available)
SN150: $860/t-$875/t
SN500: $885/t-$900/t
SN900: $1,060/t-$1,075/t

U.S. origin
SN150: $970/t
SN500: $930/t
SN900: $1,100/t

Ray Masson is director of Pumacrown Ltd., a trader and broker of petroleum products in London, U.K. Contact him directly at pumacrown@email.com.

Lubes’n’Greases shall not be liable for commercial decisions based on the contents of this report.

Archived base oil price reports can be found through this link: https://www.lubesngreases.com/category/base-stocks/other/base-oil-pricing-report/

Historic and current base oil pricing data are available for purchase in Excel format.