Mercuria Seeks Suspension and Retroactive Invalidation of TD3C Oil Freight Index
Key Facts
The Baltic Exchange faces a lawsuit from Mercuria over the TD3C oil freight index from the Middle East Gulf to China, with the company seeking the index’s suspension and retroactive invalidation. The exchange said it received the claim on April 30, 2026, and that Mercuria is seeking declaratory relief from the English High Court. The case centers on whether the index assessments have represented the market since U.S. and Israeli military operations against Iran began at the end of February 2026, according to the ruling. Mercuria had challenged whether the assessments represented the market from that point, according to coverage of the case. The exchange describes the company’s claim as “without merit” and says it will defend itself.
The lawsuit concerns an index for very large crude carrier voyages from the Middle East Gulf to China, not a general measure of all shipping costs. The Baltic Exchange’s guide defines TD3C as a round voyage that begins with loading oil at Ras Tanura and ends at Ningbo, on a time-charter equivalent basis. The route’s assessment has practical significance because the exchange’s data are used to settle freight derivatives and physical-market contracts, including freight agreements and period charters. The Baltic methodology says route assessments reflect brokers’ estimates of prevailing open-market levels. When the market is active, reports are expected to draw on fixtures, ongoing negotiations and transactional data, according to the guide. The dispute therefore concerns the production of a price benchmark used by participants in freight and finance markets, according to the exchange’s description of how its data are used.
Mercuria amended its requests during the case, according to October 21 coverage; it is no longer seeking to rework the index assessments for the period since the start of the Strait of Hormuz crisis. Instead, it is seeking retroactive invalidation and suspension of the index, according to the coverage. The court ruling sets the scope of the complaint as published since February 2026, the period when the military operations cited in the ruling began. The Baltic says the company is seeking declaratory relief from the English High Court and denies breaching its legal and contractual obligations in producing TD3C. It also expresses confidence that it has complied with its legal, contractual and regulatory obligations. The difference between the amended requests and a demand to rework the assessments marks a shift in the scope of the dispute, as reported in coverage of the case.
TD3C recorded large moves in October, according to Lloyd’s List coverage on October 21. Its assessment reached $1.41 million per day on October 8, an all-time high for the index. It then fell 7% to $1.31 million per day by October 21. In parallel, ICE launched futures contracts for the TD34 route, which measures shipping from the Gulf of Oman to Ningbo; the Baltic began assessing the route in June 2026. In the first five trading days for TD34 contracts, from October 5 to 9, they recorded 3,837 trades, compared with 2,989 trades for TD3C contracts over the same period. The Baltic said TD34 trading exceeded TD3C trading by more than 128% in its first week, which it viewed as evidence of demand for additional hedging tools for Middle East tanker routes.
Lloyd’s List warned that a Baltic loss in the case could have significant repercussions for existing freight futures linked to TD3C, as well as long-term charters tied to the index. That reflects the potential ruling’s reach into existing contracts, according to the shipping publication’s warning, alongside the question of whether the assessments will continue to be published. The expedited trial is scheduled to begin in London on October 26, 2026, and last 15 days, according to October 21 coverage. The exchange had said it would defend the case to the end. ICE also announced the launch of new futures contracts for the TD15 route, from West Africa to China, on October 5, among the freight products the Baltic cited in the context of demand for coverage of additional routes.