Platts to launch USGC-West Coast Central America clean tanker freight assessment

S&P Global Platts will launch a US Gulf Coast-West Coast Central America clean tanker freight assessment for Medium Range tankers, effective Aug. 2, 2021, to reflect a growing trade flow of refined oil products on this route.

Platts first proposed these new assessments in a subscriber note published June 8: https://www.spglobal.com/platts/en/our-methodology/subscriber-notes/060821-platts-proposes-to-launch-usgc-west-coast-central-america-clean-tanker-freight-assessment

The new freight assessment will reflect the cost of chartering a clean MR tanker three to 10 days forward, to transport a 38,000 mt cargo from typical ports on the US Gulf Coast -- stretching from Corpus Christi to New Orleans -- to typical ports on the West Coast of Central America, stretching from Guatemala to Costa Rica. The assessment value will reflect a discharge port basis of San Jose, Guatemala.

The new assessment will be published on a lump-sum basis and expressed as US dollars per voyage, reflecting how this route is traded. Platts will also publish the equivalent US dollar per metric ton value for this route.

Port costs associated with transit through the Panama Canal will be included in the lump-sum freight cost.

The new assessments are:

The daily assessments will appear on Platts Global Alert page 1912, on Platts Shipping Alert page 2320 and in the Platts Clean Tankerwire. The monthly averages will be published on Platts Global Alert page 1913, on Platts Shipping Alert page 2321 and in the Platts Clean Tankerwire Monthly. All prices will also be available in the Platts price database under the codes above.

Please send any further feedback, comments or questions to shipping@spglobal.com and pricegroup@spglobal.com. For written comments, please provide a clear indication if comments are not intended for publication by Platts for public viewing. Platts will consider all comments received and will make comments not marked as confidential available to the public upon request.