Dated Brent Explained
Dated Brent is the price of physical North Sea crude cargoes with fixed loading dates 10 days to one month ahead. S&P Global Platts assesses it every London trading day, and the cheapest of six grades sets the price: Brent, Forties, Oseberg, Ekofisk, Troll and WTI Midland (the "BFOETM" basket). It is the reference for most physical crude sold in the Atlantic Basin.
What "dated" means
A North Sea cargo becomes "dated" once the terminal operator has given it a specific loading window. Before that, a cargo for a future month trades on the forward market, known as cash BFOE, without a fixed date. Dated Brent is therefore the most prompt price in the Brent complex. It reflects what refiners pay for oil they can actually lift in the next few weeks.
The price most people see is different. Headlines and live quotes such as the one on the Brent crude oil price page follow front-month ICE Brent futures, which reference cargoes loading one to two months later. The Brent spot vs futures guide explains how the two compare.
The Dated Brent basket
| Grade | Origin | Basis | Added to the benchmark |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brent | UK North Sea | FOB Sullom Voe | Original grade |
| Forties | UK North Sea | FOB Hound Point | 2002 |
| Oseberg | Norway | FOB Sture | 2002 |
| Ekofisk | Norway | FOB Teesside | 2007 |
| Troll | Norway | FOB Mongstad | 2018 |
| WTI Midland | United States (Permian Basin) | CIF Rotterdam, netted back to an FOB North Sea equivalent | June 2023 deliveries |
Sources: S&P Global Platts subscriber notes (2022) and IEA Oil Market Report (May 2026). Platts applies quality premiums and a sulfur de-escalator so that the grades can be compared on a common basis.
How Platts assesses Dated Brent
Platts runs a Market on Close (MOC) window each afternoon in London. Traders submit bids and offers for physical cargoes of the six grades for specific loading windows. Platts uses that activity to assess each grade, then normalises the assessments for quality and freight. The lowest-priced grade sets Dated Brent, because a seller delivering against a Brent contract will always choose the cheapest eligible cargo.
WTI Midland needs an extra step. It is traded delivered into Rotterdam (CIF), so Platts deducts a freight value to convert it into a virtual FOB North Sea price. The freight value is based on an average of routes from the five North Sea loading ports. The WTI Midland page explains why the US grade was added.
Why the basket keeps growing
Production from the original Brent field fell steadily after the 1980s, and fewer cargoes made the benchmark easier to squeeze. Platts responded by adding Forties and Oseberg in 2002, Ekofisk in 2007 and Troll in 2018. WTI Midland followed in 2023 because North Sea output kept declining while US exports to Europe grew. It brought a large, regular supply of light sweet cargoes into the price-setting pool.
How Dated Brent links to ICE Brent futures
Three instruments join physical and paper Brent into one market:
| Layer | What it prices | Link to the next layer |
|---|---|---|
| ICE Brent futures | Cargoes for a month one to two months ahead | Cash-settled against the ICE Brent Index; EFP converts a futures position into forward physical |
| Forward (cash BFOE) | Undated cargoes for a future loading month | Cargoes become "dated" when loading windows are assigned |
| CFDs | The weekly difference between Dated Brent and the forward month | Lets traders hedge or speculate on the shape of the prompt curve |
| Dated Brent | Physical cargoes loading 10 days to one month ahead | Used in contracts for most Atlantic Basin crude |
- EFP (exchange of futures for physical). A trader swaps an ICE Brent futures position for a forward physical position. The EFP price captures the small value difference between futures and the forward market.
- CFDs (contracts for difference). Weekly swaps on the spread between Dated Brent and the forward month. A refiner buying a cargo priced on Dated can use CFDs to lock in the spread over the next few weeks.
- Dated-to-frontline (DFL). A swap on the spread between Dated Brent and front-month futures over a period, used to hedge the gap between physical and futures pricing.
Because Dated and futures always refer to different loading months, the IEA describes the spread between them as "a rolling calendar spread, with no intrinsic drift towards convergence". In normal markets it stays within about plus or minus $2/bbl.
Dated Brent in 2026
The 2026 Middle East supply shock hit prompt physical crude hardest, so Dated Brent moved far more than futures. According to the IEA's May 2026 Oil Market Report:
- Dated Brent averaged $120.36/bbl in April 2026 and peaked at $144.68/bbl in early April.
- Its premium to front-month ICE Brent futures hit a record $35.41/bbl on 7 April 2026, then narrowed to about $3/bbl in early May.
- All six basket grades traded at premiums above $20/bbl to Dated at their highest, as refiners in Europe and Asia competed for Atlantic Basin cargoes.
- Dated moved from a $49/bbl discount to Dubai in mid-March to a $31/bbl premium in mid-April.
The EIA's daily Brent spot series, which follows the physical market, averaged $114/bbl in September 2026 and peaked at $131/bbl on 15 September, according to the October 2026 Short-Term Energy Outlook. See oil prices in 2026 for the full record and contango and backwardation for what a steep prompt premium means.
Who uses Dated Brent
Dated Brent is the reference for crude from the North Sea, West Africa, the Mediterranean and the Caspian, for Urals differentials, and for many Middle East producers' sales to Europe. It also appears in refinery margin calculations and long-term supply contracts. Traders who need a liquid hedge usually use ICE Brent futures and manage the remaining Dated exposure with CFDs.
Dated Brent FAQ
What is Dated Brent?
Dated Brent is the assessed price of physical North Sea crude cargoes that have been given a loading date 10 days to one month ahead. S&P Global Platts publishes it daily. It is set by the cheapest of six grades: Brent, Forties, Oseberg, Ekofisk, Troll and WTI Midland.
What is the difference between Dated Brent and Brent futures?
Dated Brent prices physical cargoes loading in the next few weeks. ICE Brent futures price cargoes for a month one to two months ahead and are cash-settled. The two usually differ by a dollar or two, but in a supply shock the prompt physical price can rise much faster, as in April 2026.
What does BFOET or BFOETM stand for?
The letters stand for the grades in the Brent basket: Brent, Forties, Oseberg, Ekofisk and Troll. Some traders add an M for WTI Midland, which has been deliverable since June 2023 cargoes. The grade with the lowest quality-adjusted price sets the Dated Brent assessment each day.
Why was WTI Midland added to Dated Brent?
North Sea production has been declining, so fewer cargoes were available to set the benchmark. WTI Midland, a light sweet US crude regularly shipped to Europe, added a large and steady supply of cargoes. Platts made it eligible from June 2023 deliveries, priced CIF Rotterdam and netted back to a North Sea basis.
Where can I see the Dated Brent price?
Platts publishes Dated Brent to subscribers. The EIA's free daily Brent spot price (series RBRTE) follows the physical market with a short delay. The IEA's monthly Oil Market Report also lists Dated Brent averages and spreads to futures and Dubai.
Related pages
Brent Crude Oil Price
Current Brent crude oil price live in USD per barrel, with a real-time chart, ICE Brent contract facts and what is driving today's move.
Brent Spot vs Futures
Brent spot price compared with Brent futures: how each is set, why they differ, where to find daily spot data and which one headlines quote.
Brent Futures
Brent crude oil futures explained: live front-month price, ICE contract specs, expiry rules, month codes and contango vs backwardation.
WTI Midland
WTI Midland explained: Permian production, Gulf Coast export pricing, Midland-Cushing spreads and why it joined the Dated Brent basket in 2023.