Mars, Poseidon Oil Premiums Gain on Pasadena Refinery Startup

The premium for Mars and Poseidon oils in the U.S. Gulf Coast both rose to the highest in two weeks after Petroleo Brasileiro SA said its Texas refinery returned all units to operation following a Sept. 30 fire.

“Pasadena Refining confirms that all units have been safely brought back into production, and the refinery is fully operational,” the company said in a statement. The plant is a unit of Petroleo Brasileiro.

The premium for Mars Blend compared to West Texas Intermediate added 55 cents to $16.55 a barrel at 1:59 p.m. in New York, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. That’s the grade’s largest premium since Oct. 24.

Poseidon’s premium to the U.S. benchmark gained 65 cents to $16.75 a barrel over WTI, also the highest since Oct. 24.

Heavy Louisiana Sweet’s premium strengthened 65 cents to $20.75 a barrel while Light Louisiana Sweet increased 45 cents a barrel to $20.45 above WTI.

Southern Green Canyon’s premium increased $1 to $16.25 a barrel and West Texas Sour was unchanged at 60 cents below WTI. Thunder Horse added 85 cents to $18.75 over the benchmark.

Syncrude’s premium to WTI was unchanged at $6 a barrel. The discount for Western Canada Select narrowed 25 cents to $11.80 a barrel.

To contact the reporter on this story: Aaron Clark in New York at aclark27@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Dan Stets at dstets@bloomberg.net