The OPEC Reference Basket (ORB) is a weighted average of petroleum used as an important benchmark for crude oil prices that comes from OPEC countries. The ORB was introduced on 16 June 2005, is currently made up of the following: Saharan Blend (Algeria), Girassol (Angola), Djeno (Congo), Zafiro (Equatorial Guinea), Rabi Light (Gabon), Iran Heavy (Islamic Republic of Iran), Basra Light (Iraq), Kuwait Export (Kuwait), Es Sider (Libya), Bonny Light (Nigeria), Arab Light (Saudi Arabia), Murban (UAE) and Merey (Venezuela).
Reference Definition by Petroleum.co.uk: The OPEC Reference Basket (ORB) is not a specific crude, but rather is a weighted average of petroleum that comes from OPEC countries. There are currently 11 different oils combined into the ORB. It averages an API gravity, with the present combination, of 32.7 degrees and has a sulfur content of 1.77%. It was recently changed to reflect the average quality of crude oil in OPEC Member Countries. The change decreased the API and increased the sulfur content of the basket.
Related Definitions in the Project: The Plant and Process Unit
