Norway’s Troll field
Global oil benchmark resolves its existential crisis
The addition of US crude to the world’s top oil benchmark has finally solved its North Sea conundrum and laid down a marker for the future
Dated Brent, used to price at least two-thirds of global crude, has gone from evolution to revolution. Just over one year ago, oil-price publisher Platts went from adding other local North Sea crude streams into the benchmark to the relative unknown of adding WTI Midland. With seemingly flawless logic, the market’s support and a leap of faith, the shift opened up Brent to truly live up to its name as a global oil-price barometer. The seismic shift was necessary. The British and Norwegian grades underpinning the contract were dwindling. Brent, Forties, Oseberg and Troll had dropped to below 700,000b/d in the middle of 2023 from 850,000b/d in December 2020 and with that fall fewer bids and off
Also in this section
4 December 2025
Time is running out for Lukoil and Rosneft to divest international assets that will be mostly rendered useless to them when the US sanctions deadline arrives in mid-December
3 December 2025
Aramco’s pursuit of $30b in US gas partnerships marks a strategic pivot. The US gains capital and certainty; Saudi Arabia gains access, flexibility and a new export future
2 December 2025
The interplay between OPEC+, China and the US will define oil markets throughout 2026
1 December 2025
The North African producer’s first bidding round in almost two decades is an important milestone but the recent extension suggests a degree of trepidation
