by ROCKMAN » Sat 06 May 2017, 17:49:08
Syn - Also as I've mentioned before: much of the world's oil production is not directly sold from the producers to the refineries. In that sense there's a bit of apple vs orange angle by comparing Vitol to any company that is principally an oil exploration and production company. From Vitol:
"In 2016, we sold over169 million tonnes of crude oil. We trade or ship around 3 million barrels of crude oil every day. Our crude trading business has long-standing relationships with producers and refiners in every part of the world. We help the former to effectively market and distribute their daily production, and the latter to secure a reliable and consistent supply of the right quality crude at the right time.
We are transacting in over 100 different grades of crude oil in locations spread around the globe. We are active in all major centres where crude is produced, refined and traded, enabling our customers to benefit from critical intelligence and access to the most appropriate market. As a physical trader, we can deliver crude anywhere our customers require. We are one of the world’s largest spot charterers of crude vessels and have a dedicated fleet of crude vessels of various sizes as well as access to storage on land around the world.
Our market-leading team combines specialist knowledge with global expertise. Over many years we have established long-term relationships with national oil companies, oil majors and independent producers. We use our expertise in managing transportation via pipeline, barge, train, truck and all sizes of vessel to efficiently and reliably transport crude to refiners worldwide. When appropriate, our traders work alongside our finance and E&P teams to develop commercial structures which allow us to finance producers’ operations in return for offtake.
Working with refiners - Today, we supply over 3.4 million barrels per day of crude oil and feedstocks to the refining industry globally.
{By comparison BP and RDS market a bit more daily. But understand some of the oil both companies sell is probably marketed again by Vitol. So while all three sell oil Vitol is a completely different business model: it is an oil trader...not a producer. And a critical aspect is Vitol blending various oils to meet the refineries' requirements}
"We take the time to understand the specific requirements and preferences of refiners worldwide and have a long track record of consistently and reliably sourcing the right feedstock to meet our customers’ needs at the right time. We currently have an ownership stake in five refineries across three continents with a total refining capacity of 390,000 barrels per day."