Venezuelan Oil Gets More US Buyers as Chevron Steps Up Loadings
Chevron Corp has stepped up sales of Venezuelan crude oil to rival U.S. refiners, adding PBF Energy Inc and Marathon Petroleum Corp to its list of customers for the crude, vessel tracking and loading schedules showed.U.S. Gulf Coast refiners, which historically processed Venezuelan oil, have shown a renewed appetite for the heavy sour crude grade after Chevron late last year received authorization from the U.S. Treasury Department to expand its operations in Venezuela and resume oil shipments to the U.S. after a four-year pause.Chevron, the last big U.S.
Record Number of VLCC Liftings at LOOP
Medium-sour crudes from the U.S. Gulf of Mexico are being snapped up by overseas buyers, paving way for a record six supertankers to load at the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port (LOOP) in a matter of weeks, according to people familiar with the matter.The six scheduled loadings in late May and early June would double the record of Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs) reached in December. An unusual influx of Gulf of Mexico crudes to the U.S. deepwater export port and weakening prices are contributing to the exports…
U.S. Refiners' 2020 Plans Now Uncertain
U.S. refiners had a plan for 2020: use their complex operations to maximize profits by making products that would comply with new international laws capping sulfur content in shipping fuels.But after a series of unexpected market moves, heavy, sour crude oil processed by U.S. refiners has become more expensive, eating up hoped-for profit windfalls before they even materialized, forcing refiners to rethink plans to invest more in heavy crude processing units.New regulations by…
Matrix Global Plans U.S. Crude Storage Deal
Matrix plans sweet crude storage futures at LOOP. Matrix Global Holdings is planning to start up an oil storage futures contract for low-sulphur crude oil that will enable companies to build up supplies for export cargoes, as Asia looks for more crude imports from the United States. The contract will give holders access to low-sulphur, or sweet, crude oil storage space at the Clovelly, Louisiana, terminal operated the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port (LOOP). The contract is expected to start up in about six months, Richard Redoglia, Matrix's chief executive officer told Reuters. Matrix currently hosts a monthly auction for crude storage at the LOOP and it offers a high-sulphur, or sour, crude oil storage futures contract through the CME Group with delivery at the Offshore Port.
Genoil Signs Tri-Partite Scientific Pact on Low Sulphur Fuel Oil
Clean technology engineering company for the petroleum industry Genoil Inc has signed a tri-partite science, research and technical cooperation agreement with two leading Russian institutions. Genoil has joined forces with the UFA Scientific Research Institute of Petroleum Refining and Petrochemistry, located in Bashkortostan, Russia, and the OJS VNIIUS Institute, located in Tatarstan, Russia to establish a world class partnership. The scope of the agreement is to research, develop and market cutting-edge technologies and patents both in the Americas and globally. The partnership will focus on the petrochemistry, petroleum refining and gas chemistry industries where, through joint co-operation and a wide base of expertise, the parties саn add significant value to client proposals.
Mercuria, PetroChina Selling Offshore Stored Fuel Oil
Three to four tankers storing fuel oil, down from eight or nine. Independent trading house Mercuria and Chinese state oil giant PetroChina are selling fuel oil stored in vessels off Singapore and southern Malaysia on strong demand from the shipping and power sector, several trade sources said on Friday. The number of vessels storing fuel oil has halved from a month ago as Mercuria and PetroChina may have resold cargoes purchased over March to May, the sources said. Geneva-based Mercuria and PetroChina bought over 6 million tonnes of fuel oil over those months in oil pricing agency S&P Global Platts' trading period known as market-on-close (MOC). Their deals made up nearly three-quarters of the volumes traded in that period, according to data compiled by Reuters.
US to Hold Test Sale from Emergency Crude Oil Reserve
Reuters - The U.S. Energy Department said on Wednesday it would conduct a test drawdown and sale of crude oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. The department will offer up to five million barrels of sour crude oil for sale, with bids due by March 14. (Reporting by Ayesha Rascoe and Timothy Gardner)
