No Brent Crude Cargoes Scheduled for August, Marking Historic First

For the first time on record, no Brent crude cargoes are scheduled to load in August, highlighting the continued decline in North Sea production and raising new questions about the future of the world's leading oil benchmark.

(Reuters) — No cargoes of North Sea Brent crude oil are scheduled to load in August as production steadily declines, traders told Reuters on June 30, marking a milestone for the global Dated Brent oil benchmark, which prices over 60% of the world's oil.

Brent crude from the North Sea lends its name to the global Dated Brent benchmark, used for pricing physical cargoes and underpinning Brent crude futures LCOc1 and other derivative contracts. Over time, S&P Global Energy, known as Platts, which manages the benchmark, has added other crudes to boost liquidity.

August is the first month in which no Brent cargo is initially scheduled to be shipped, according to a loading plan seen by Reuters and LSEG data going back to 2007. There have been months where no new Brent cargoes were set to load, as occasionally cargoes are delayed into the next month.

"What is left of Brent is just a brand name of the most important crude oil contract in the world," said Adi Imsirovic, a Brent expert and veteran oil trader. "At some stage, Brent crude will disappear, but the contract is likely to remain for many years to come."

Now, Brent is one of five North Sea grades that underpin the Brent complex, along with Forties, Oseberg, Ekofisk and Troll. Platts also added U.S. crude WTI Midland in 2023 to bolster liquidity.

The drop in volumes has raised questions on Brent's future inclusion in Dated Brent. Platts said on June 30 the benchmark remained healthy.

"The inclusion of Forties, Oseberg, Ekofisk, Troll and WTI Midland ensures the benchmark continues to function robustly," an S&P Global Energy spokesperson said. "The benchmark’s robustness is maintained even when an individual grade has no scheduled loadings in a given month."

Neither Brent field operator Shell, nor Brent pipeline system operator TAQA, responded to Reuters' request for comment on production levels.

Brent loadings have averaged around 23,000 barrels per day in 2026 so far, or around one cargo per month, less than a quarter of the volume a decade ago, according to LSEG data.

Combined loadings of all five North Sea grades will average around 474,000 bpd in August and much more when WTI Midland is included.