S&P Global Platts, the leading independent provider of information and benchmark prices for the commodities and energy markets, and Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (ICE), a leading operator of global exchanges and clearing houses and provider of data and listings services, extend their technology partnership to bring the Platts Editorial Window (eWindow)® communication tool to the LNG trading community. The partnership delivers a best-in-class solution for the fast growing LNG market that leverages the two firms’ market leading capabilities across commodity pricing and technology.
eWindow is an online data-entry and communications tool that allows market participants in the Platts Markets On Close (MOC) price assessment process to communicate bids, offers and transactions directly to Platts editors and the marketplace simultaneously. Its grid-like screen offers an easy, at-a-glance view and allows market participants to instantly respond to the bids and offers submitted.
eWindow is already widely adopted to power the MOC process for key oil benchmarks and now will be accessible for Platts LNG price assessments, such as Platts JKM™, the benchmark price for LNG delivered into Northeast Asia.
ICE offers the broadest range of natural gas benchmarks, hosting UK NBP, EU TTF, US Henry Hub and JKM LNG (Platts), allowing market participants to hedge their price risk via futures and options for the major gas hubs globally.
ICE JKM LNG (Platts) futures and options contracts are increasingly being used as the benchmark contract for LNG in Asia and continue to break new trading records as one of the fastest growing natural gas benchmarks and the most liquid Asian natural gas benchmark. ICE JKM LNG (Platts) hit a record 44,394 lots for futures and options combined in June and reached a new open interest record of 52,080 lots at the end of June. As LNG markets continue to liberalize and new types of price agreements emerge between buyers and sellers of LNG, a range of hedging products are critical to allow the market to hedge risk and manage price exposure.
Martin Fraenkel, President, S&P Global Platts, said: “We are delighted to extend our longstanding partnership with ICE to bring eWindow, which has long been adopted by the oil trading community, to the Platts MOC price assessment process for LNG markets. In the decade since we launched Platts JKM, our focus has been to help bring increased transparency to the pricing of LNG and feedback from market participants is that now is the right time to offer the LNG trading community the benefits of the eWindow communication tool.”
Chuck Vice, Vice Chairman, Intercontinental Exchange, said: “Platts and ICE have a long and successful history of working together to bring transparent price discovery to energy markets. The launch of eWindow is an important milestone in the ongoing maturity and evolution of LNG markets, moving it to the next level in terms of standardization and transparency. ICE is home to the broadest range of natural gas benchmark futures markets with an established and growing global community of gas traders using futures and options to transact and manage their price risk. eWindow for LNG will support the physical spot market and the quality of the price discovery process.”
Trading does not occur on the eWindow, but the tool’s compatibility with ICE technology allows eWindow users to execute trades on the ICE platform without leaving the Platts MOC price assessment process and environment.