Reliance buys Abu Dhabi’s Murban oil on Futures Platform

Reliance Industries Ltd. purchased a shipment of Abu Dhabi’s flagship Murban crude in recent days on an Intercontinental Exchange Inc. platform.

Traders said Reliance bought one million barrels through a series of futures contracts on ICE Futures Abu Dhabi, and was looking for a counterparty to convert the volumes into physically deliverable supplies through the so-called Exchange of Futures for Physical instrument.

The shipment will likely be for loading in September, the traders added, asking not to be identified as they aren’t authorized to speak publicly.

Reliance didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

The refiner earlier took a similar-sized cargo of Murban from the spot market, shortly after the European Union placed new curbs on Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine. The latest curbs have prompted traders to closely watch the crude-procurement patterns of Indian refiners, who process large amounts of Russian oil into fuels which are often sold into Europe.

There’s still no clarity on whether Reliance or other Indian refiners will avoid Russian crudes such as Urals in favor of other suppliers, including those in the Middle East.

While Murban futures on IFAD don’t trade as actively as Brent or West Texas Intermediate, there’s been a rise in volumes in the past few days. Nearly 33,000 lots of Murban traded across the curve on Thursday, the highest level in three weeks.