Adnoc may sell its 10% stake in global storage operator VTTI, with Adani among the suitors

Adnoc may sell its entire 10% stake in global storage operator VTTI, with India’s Adani Group among the suitors, Bloomberg reported, citing people it says are familiar with the matter. VTTI runs terminals for oil products, chemicals, biofuels, and LNG across Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Africa, and the Americas. An agreement could value the Rotterdam-based company at c. EUR 3 bn (USD 3.4 bn), which, by our math, would put Adnoc’s stake at around EUR 300 mn. Co-owners IFM Investors and Vitol, which hold 45% each, may also sell down their stakes. Other bidders are in the mix, and the talks may not end in a sale.

Energy traders pay up for storage when supply is disrupted: VTTI’s network includes the UK’s Dragon LNG and Italy’s Adriatic LNG. Adriatic LNG’s main customer, Edison, has been taking replacement cargoes there since QatarEnergy declared force majeure on its supply contract.

Selling would unwind a 2019 investment for Adnoc. It bought into VTTI that year to secure storage in key export markets across Asia, Africa, and Europe, along with more capacity in Fujairah, its main storage hub outside Hormuz. At the time, Adnoc said storage closer to customers would give it more control over where, when, and how its products reached them.

Delivery included

Kuwait is taking over the shipping on a full year of naphtha sales. Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) has signed its first term naphtha contract on a delivered basis after the war disrupted free-on-board (FOB) loadings in Hormuz, Reuters reports, citing traders in the know. KPC will now be responsible for getting cargoes to the buyer’s port. The contract covers full-range naphtha for delivery from December 2026 to November 2027, at a premium of around USD 75 a ton over Japan quotes. KPC previously sold on FOB terms.

SOUND SMART- The change is about who handles the voyage: Under FOB terms, the buyer arranges shipping once the cargo is loaded. Under delivered ex-ship (DES) terms, the seller carries the cargo to the destination port.

The war has already reshaped KPC’s naphtha calendar. All of KPC’s spot offers since the war began have been on a delivered basis, and the term agreement follows the same model. The company usually tenders annual naphtha contracts in three cycles (April-March, August-July, and December-November) but canceled the August cycle this year, according to Reuters.

REMEMBER- We reported in September that KPC was using owned and chartered tankers to deliver crude directly to customers or transfer it to other vessels outside the strait. Buyers seeking delivery outside Hormuz faced higher prices, while those willing to collect inside the Gulf were offered reductions.