Brent is a light sweet grade of crude oil produced in the North Sea.  The name refers to both a specific grade of crude produced from the Brent and Ninian system of fields in the North Sea, and to a broader pricing benchmark for all light/sweet crude oil.

Production

Brent as a specific grade was originally just the crude oil produced from the Brent system in the North Sea, comprised of the Brent, Cormorant, Hutton, Thistle, Murchison, and Dunlin fields.  However, as production declined, it was blended with crude from the nearby Ninian system (Ninian, Alwyn North, and Magnus fields) to maintain volume.  Production from the Brent platform ceased in 2021 but the blend is still produced from the other remaining fields.

The major loading point for Brent is the Sullom Voe terminal, which receives crude from the Brent and Ninian pipelines in the east Shetland Basin. The terminal has four crude oil-loading berths that can handle tankers from 18,000-350,000 deadweight tons. Maximum draft ranges from 15.9 meters at Jetty No.1 to 22.6 m at Jetties 3 and 4.

Brent (including all of the grades that make up the BFOE basket) largely goes to refineries in Northwest Europe.  It competes with light sweet grades from West Africa (Bonny Light, Escravos, Qua Iboe), North Africa (Saharan Light), Central Asia (Azeri) and North America (WTI).

Pricing and the Brent Complex

Brent quickly became an important benchmark against which other crudes were priced.  It started as a regional benchmark for a large number of light sweet crude oils produced in the North Sea.  It has evolved into a  global benchmark for all  crude prices.  Brent's role as a benchmark is reinforced by its active forward and derivatives markets. 

The market for Brent is actually a variety of different contract markets that vary in terms of timing, and physical vs financial settlement.  These are collectively referred to as the Brent Complex.  Major elements in include:

• Dated Brent  - Transactions for actual physical cargoes of crude for delivery within the current month (10-30 days out), on a specific date. Essentially the spot market for "Brent-quality" crude.  This assessment includes transactions for a variety of grades.   Over time as Brent blend volumes declined, other grades were added to the assessment of the benchmark price, including Forties, Oseberg, Ekofisk, Troll, and as of 2023 WTI (sourced from Midland and delivered to Northwest Europe).  This basket is often referred to as BFOE (Sometimes BFOET). Prices for dated Brent are assessed by the three major price reporting agencies (PRAs) - Platts, Argus and ICIS. However, the Platts "Dated Brent" assessment is the basis for the ICE Brent future contract and is generally considered the "official" Brent price.   

• Brent forward contracts - Bilateral monthly contracts for physical Brent cargoes, traded up to four months out.

• Brent futures - Exchanged traded futures contracts for standard cargoes (1000 bbls) of Brent, traded for  monthly periods extending out 96 months.  These are paper-only contracts and are generally settled for cash.