The Dubai Mercantile Exchange Limited (DME), a joint venture between Tatweer, a member of Dubai Holding and the New York Mercantile Exchange Inc. (NYMEX) today announced that Emirates Airline has joined the working group established by the DME and ENOC Supply & Trading (L.L.C.) in August 2006, in order to explore the development of the world's first physically delivered jet fuel futures contract, which will be traded on the DME.

The parties will focus on combining the DME's efforts to develop an energy futures exchange in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) leveraging ENOC's expertise in the refining and trading of jet fuel and Emirates Airline's position as a leading international airline and consumer of jet fuel. The working group will also include other experts from the refining, trading and aviation industries.

Working together the group will seek to identify the elements necessary for creating a successful jet fuel contract. The working group expects to commence its activities prior to the end of November 2006. It aims to have in place a draft proposal on the key elements of the contract by the year end with a view towards listing a jet fuel contract on the DME during the second half of 2007.

Welcoming the announcement, Ahmad Sharaf, Senior Vice President, Energy and Healthcare - Tatweer, and Chairman of the DME Board of Directors, "We are delighted to have Emirates Airline join the working group. Their participation in this effort is a strong show of support and further demonstrates the desire from the industry, both on the producing and consuming sides, to achieve greater transparency and efficiency in the price discovery mechanism for jet fuel.

"We have already successfully developed the first Middle East Sour Crude Oil Futures Contract with the backing and support of the Sultanate of Oman's Ministry of Oil and Gas, and with the help of other industry participants, we are now actively seeking to develop additional contracts that can support the energy trading community in better managing price and credit risk in a transparent and open marketplace."

Gary Chapman, President, Emirates Group Services said: "We welcome the opportunity to work with the DME and its partners in developing a market for jet fuel futures here in Dubai. This is an exciting opportunity for key stakeholders in the industry to build a potentially vibrant new market for jet fuel from scratch."

The DME is currently in the process of engaging with additional key groups, which can further add value to the efforts of the working group. These are expected to include a number of representatives from prominent oil majors and traders.

Furthermore, during the course of the contract's development the working group will engage a wider audience of industry players including other regional producers and trading houses for the purpose of creating a futures contract that meets their risk management needs.

Gary King, Chief Executive of the DME added, "We have found that consulting with the energy and trading community on the development of products is critical to the ultimate success of the contracts that we plan to list. As such, we are set to employ an approach similar to that used in the creation of our Oman Sour Crude Oil Futures Contract to ensure that we can meet the needs of the industry and gain a strong level of support prior to the listing of the contract."

The establishment of an exchange inside the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and the associated clearing and settlement services to be provided by the NYMEX Clearinghouse are subject to regulatory approval from the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) and the licensing of the DME as an Authorized Market Institution (AMI) to operate as an exchange.