Intercontinental Exchange to Launch ICE Futures Abu Dhabi on 29 March 2021

American futures exchange Intercontinental Exchange, or ICE, announced on Monday its plan to launch ICE Futures Abu Dhabi (IFAD) and the world's first futures contracts based on Murban crude oil on 29 March 2021, subject to the completion of regulatory approvals.

The American Fortune 500 company revealed its intention to launch IFAD in November 2019, with the producer of Murban crude the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) and nine of the world's largest energy traders.

ICE Murban Crude Oil Futures will be a physically delivered contract with delivery at Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on a free on board (FOB) basis. Additionally, ICE also plans to launch, alongside Murban futures, a range of cash settled derivatives, including outright, differential and crack differentials against Brent, WTI, Gasoil and Naphtha among others, as well as inter-commodity spreads.

According to the exchange, contracts traded at IFAD will be cleared at ICE Clear Europe alongside ICE's leading global energy futures covering oil, natural gas and the environmental complex, allowing customers to benefit from associated margin offsets and delivering meaningful capital efficiencies.