LECTURE

DOWNSTREAM SECTORS
& PETROLEUM ECONOMICS

Worldwide Petroleum Economics

Worldwide energy supply; demand; reserves; pricing: corporate strategy; recent history and prediction of future trends; how petroleum economists make predictions.

Markets for Associated Natural Gas

The natural gas chain: industry structure and regional markets, interfuel competition; gas distribution; regulation and deregulation; economics and markets for gas, including combined-cycle power plants, LNG, ammonia, methanol and gas-to-liquids.

Refining and Petrochemicals

Refinery: capacity evolution; technology changes; capital and operating costs; profitability; net-back estimation and recent trends. Petrochemicals in perspective: links to refining; key product families; industry drivers: cost of production, supply/demand; profitability and price forecasting; prospects for the future: maturity, environmental concerns, global competition.

Crude Oil Tanker Transportation

The tanker industry and market trends: an overview of the main characteristics of crude tankers; capital and operating costs; pollution at sea and the new regulations; calculating tanker transportation rates; world scale and charter arrangements.

Marketing of Crude Oil and Products

Development of the free market for oil; current international market structure; regional markets: physicals, futures, forwards, derivatives, options; roles of participants, price formation, price volatility; price reporting; crude oil and product pricing; negotiating and pricing petroleum sales contracts; introduction to hedging and price risk management.

Products Distribution

Distribution and retail marketing of petroleum products; structure of the margins realized along the distribution value chain; transitions in the marketing of transportation fuels; economics of the modern gasoline station.

“IHRDC’s mission has always been to develop training programs and resources that are driven by excellence and innovation. Our objective is to deliver programs and products in ways that are sure to enhance individual and organizational performance for our clients.”
– Dr. David A. T. Donohue
President and Program Director, IHRDC