Diesel shortage sweeps the globe! Canadian synthetic oil prices have quadrupled within a week, with a premium over WTI approaching the $20 mark.

Zhitong Finance App noticed that, because the world is scrambling to secure truck and train fuel (diesel), Canadian synthetic crude oil—an option that refiners favor due to abundant diesel output—has seen its price quadruple in just a few days.

According to data from Modern Commodities, the price of this crude oil, produced by specially processing the bitumen in Alberta’s oil sands, is currently 19.25 dollars per barrel higher than the U.S. benchmark crude oil—West Texas Intermediate (WTI)—monthly average price. Since March 27, its premium has nearly doubled, with a gain of almost 200%.

The data stands in stark contrast to the situation one day before the outbreak of the Iran war, when the price of synthetic crude oil was 85 cents lower than WTI.

As Iran has effectively blocked the Strait of Hormuz and retaliatory attacks targeting Persian Gulf energy infrastructure have disrupted global energy flows, the diesel market is in turmoil.

After U.S. President Donald Trump said the U.S. would deliver a heavy blow to Iran in the next two to three weeks, and that the Strait of Hormuz would “naturally” reopen after the conflict ends, European diesel futures prices rose to more than $200 per barrel for the first time since 2022.

Because shipping disruptions cut off traditional crude supply, diesel output at refiners in the Middle East and Asia has been severely hit.

The chemical composition of synthetic crude oil and its extremely low sulfur content mean that, compared with other crude grades, refiners can extract more diesel and jet fuel from it. In addition, upcoming turnaround and maintenance work will cause some oil-sands processing facilities to cut production, which also pushes up the price of synthetic crude oil.