Global B2B oil intelligence

Crude oil: grades, benchmarks and refinery fit

From Arab Light and Murban to Dubai/Oman, CPC Blend, Urals and Doba Blend: professional readers need assay logic, not just names.

Crude oil: grades, benchmarks and refinery fit

All visuals in this package are self-created SVG graphics suitable for commercial deployment without third-party image rights.

How this portal reads the market

Structured overview, trade logic, typical specifications and delivery constraints.

Deep diveArab Light

Arab Light

Classic medium sour export crude with broad relevance for Asian and European refining systems.

Deep diveMurban

Murban

Light Abu Dhabi crude linked to transparent market pricing and high straight-run value.

Deep diveDubai / Oman

Dubai / Oman

Benchmark family for Gulf-to-Asia pricing, term supply and physical signaling.

Deep diveDoba Blend

Doba Blend

Chadian heavy sweet stream known for distinctive acidity and blending relevance.

  • Why it matters commercially
  • What professional buyers compare first
  • Which operational risks can destroy margin
  • How documentation and compliance fit into the flow

Further depth for professionals

This page links into deeper modules on margins, assay reading, freight structure, trade finance and supply-chain risk.

Related analytical routes

Expanded world crude atlas

Expanded world crude atlas

Browse a much deeper directory of global crude grades, benchmark families and regional export streams.

Open atlas

Expanded world crude atlas

Atlas extensions

Origins, producing countries and export systems

Origins, producing countries and export systems

Track crude grades by origin country, export route and commercial relevance.

Open origin atlas

Export terminals, loading corridors and seaborne crude systems

Export terminals, loading corridors and seaborne crude systems

A crude grade is not only an assay. It is also a loading window, parcel size and freight position.

Open export systems

How crude grades are classified

How crude grades are classified

API gravity, sulfur, residue behaviour and refinery fit determine how traders and refiners read a named grade.

Open classification guide

Related guides

World crude map: origins, countries and representative grades

A visual atlas of where named crude streams come from, grouped by producing countries and export regions.

Open page

Crude substitution baskets: compare barrels the way buyers actually do

The real question is not whether two grades sound similar, but whether they remain substitutable after quality, freight and terminal constraints are added.

Open guide

Route economics and Incoterms: from FOB headlines to delivered value

A cargo can look cheap on paper and still disappoint after freight, timing, demurrage and documentary friction are added.

Open guide

Deep-dive infrastructure and market mechanics

SEO-focused specialist pages on pipelines, export hubs, benchmarks, tanker classes and refinery complexity.

Pipeline systems, nominations and terminal interfaces

How gathering lines, trunk pipelines, tariffs, linefill and terminal interfaces shape crude availability and market optionality.

Open page

Export hubs, berths and port-side crude optionality

A commercial guide to berth availability, draft constraints, storage turns, inspection timing and the role of export hubs in crude price discovery.

Open page

Benchmark relationships, spreads and differential logic

A practical guide to how Brent-, WTI-, Dubai/Oman- and cargo-linked pricing families interact across crude and product flows.

Open page

Tanker classes, parcel size and voyage economics

How Aframax, Suezmax, VLCC and smaller product-tanker categories change route economics, storage logic and crude placement.

Open page

Refinery complexity, yield value and crude fit

Why API gravity, sulfur, residue upgrading, hydrogen balance and product cracks determine how a refinery values one grade versus another.

Open page