Latest news with #refiners
Zawya
21 hours ago
- Business
- Zawya
Saudi crude oil supply to China set to fall in September, sources say
SINGAPORE - Saudi Arabia's crude oil exports to China are set to fall in September, slipping from a more than two-year high in August after the world's largest exporter raised prices, three trade sources said on Monday. State oil firm Saudi Aramco will ship about 43 million barrels to China in September, or 1.43 million barrels per day (bpd), a tally of allocations to Chinese refiners showed. This is down from 1.65 million bpd allocated in August. (Reporting by Florence Tan; Editing by Kim Coghill)
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Refiners Smell Profits as Heavy Crude Comes Roaring Back--But One Risk Lurks
Refiners may finally be catching a break. After months of margin pressure from tight heavy-light crude spreads, companies like Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC), Valero (NYSE:VLO), and PBF Energy (NYSE:PBF) are positioning for a potential rebound in the second half of the year. On its latest earnings call, Marathon's Chief Commercial Officer Rick Hessling said wider differentials could be on the way, driven by OPEC production increases and Canadian supply coming back online post-maintenance. Gulf Coast refiners, many of which are configured to process heavy crude, stand to benefit if discounted barrels start flowing again. We expect differentials to widen out in the second half this year, Hessling said, pointing to September as a key turning point. Warning! GuruFocus has detected 6 Warning Sign with CASY. Valero's management echoed that optimismwith caution. Chief Operating Officer Gary Simmons flagged that while recent events like Venezuelan sanctions and Canadian wildfires have tightened supply, the worst may be behind. Going forward, we do think things will get better, Simmons noted, although he expects the margin boost to be more visible by Q4. PBF Energy's CEO Matthew Lucey added that the second quarter was tough, calling narrow crude spreads a significant challenge, but projected 2 million to 2.5 million barrels per day of heavy output could return by fall, just in time for seasonal refinery maintenance. Meanwhile, Californiaof all placesmight quietly become a swing factor. Recent regulatory shifts under Governor Gavin Newsom could revive in-state drilling, just as Phillips 66 and Valero prepare to shut down major refineries on the West Coast. With less refining capacity and more California crude staying local, Marathon sees those barrels as "advantaged." But one variable could complicate this recovery: potential sanctions on Russian crude under a future Trump administration. The only unknown here is really what happens with the Russian sanctions, Valero's Simmons warned. If sanctions tighten, that could cut off Russian barrels and push heavy crude prices back up, limiting gains for U.S. refiners. This article first appeared on GuruFocus.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Refiners Smell Profits as Heavy Crude Comes Roaring Back--But One Risk Lurks
Refiners may finally be catching a break. After months of margin pressure from tight heavy-light crude spreads, companies like Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC), Valero (NYSE:VLO), and PBF Energy (NYSE:PBF) are positioning for a potential rebound in the second half of the year. On its latest earnings call, Marathon's Chief Commercial Officer Rick Hessling said wider differentials could be on the way, driven by OPEC production increases and Canadian supply coming back online post-maintenance. Gulf Coast refiners, many of which are configured to process heavy crude, stand to benefit if discounted barrels start flowing again. We expect differentials to widen out in the second half this year, Hessling said, pointing to September as a key turning point. Warning! GuruFocus has detected 6 Warning Sign with CASY. Valero's management echoed that optimismwith caution. Chief Operating Officer Gary Simmons flagged that while recent events like Venezuelan sanctions and Canadian wildfires have tightened supply, the worst may be behind. Going forward, we do think things will get better, Simmons noted, although he expects the margin boost to be more visible by Q4. PBF Energy's CEO Matthew Lucey added that the second quarter was tough, calling narrow crude spreads a significant challenge, but projected 2 million to 2.5 million barrels per day of heavy output could return by fall, just in time for seasonal refinery maintenance. Meanwhile, Californiaof all placesmight quietly become a swing factor. Recent regulatory shifts under Governor Gavin Newsom could revive in-state drilling, just as Phillips 66 and Valero prepare to shut down major refineries on the West Coast. With less refining capacity and more California crude staying local, Marathon sees those barrels as "advantaged." But one variable could complicate this recovery: potential sanctions on Russian crude under a future Trump administration. The only unknown here is really what happens with the Russian sanctions, Valero's Simmons warned. If sanctions tighten, that could cut off Russian barrels and push heavy crude prices back up, limiting gains for U.S. refiners. This article first appeared on GuruFocus. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Bloomberg
4 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
US Refiners Are Bullish on Margins as Heavy Oil Output Rebounds
A key driver of US refiners' profitability — the ability to buy heavy crude at cheap prices — is set to improve in the second half of the year as Canadian and Middle Eastern production rebounds. Along with demand for their core fuel products, refiners need cost-effective inputs, and many have retooled plants — especially along the Gulf Coast — to process increasing amounts of discounted heavy crude or to more easily switch between light and heavy oil. That shift has made the price spread between the two grades a closely watched barometer for refiners' earnings power.
Zawya
4 days ago
- Business
- Zawya
Indian state refiners step up non-Russian oil purchases under Trump pressure
India's biggest state refiners Indian Oil Corp and Bharat Petroleum have bought at least 22 million barrels of non-Russian crude for delivery in September and October, trade sources said, after the U.S. pressured India to halt purchases from Russia. Indian state refiners had been largely absent from the spot market since 2022, instead becoming one of the few purchasers of cheaper Russian crude after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. They paused Russian purchases in late July after pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump. "As President Trump is applying pressure on the country of India, not individual entities, no doubt... there will be discussion between the government and those refiners continuing to import," said Harry Tchilinguirian, group head of research at Onyx Capital Group. In its latest tender, IOC bought 2 million barrels of U.S. Mars crude, 2 million barrels of Brazilian grades, and another 1 million barrels of Libyan crude on a delivered basis, the sources said. BP sold the high-sulphur Mars crude cargo at $1.5-$2 a barrel above September Dubai quotes, they added. European trader Petraco sold the 1 million barrels of Libyan Sarir and Mesla crude and Totsa, the trading arm of TotalEnergies, sold the 2 million barrels of Brazilian Sepia and Sururu crude, the sources said. The prices for these cargoes were not immediately available. Those deals follow IOC's purchase of 8 million barrels of September delivery crude from the Middle East, U.S., Canada and Nigeria via tenders in the past week. India's second biggest state refiner BPCL bought 9 million barrels of oil through negotiations for September arrival, a source familiar with the purchases said. That included 1 million barrels of Angola Girassol, 1 million barrels of U.S. Mars, 3 million barrels of Abu Dhabi Murban and 2 million barrels of Nigerian oil, he said. Companies typically do not comment on crude deals, citing confidentiality. The combined spot purchases by the two state refiners for September and October are equivalent to about 6% of India's crude processing in May, Reuters calculations showed. The arbitrage economics of sending Atlantic Basin grades to Asia have also improved for Asian refiners, supporting these purchases, the sources said. (Reporting by Nidhi Verma in New Delhi and Florence Tan in Singapore; Editing by Jacqueline Wong, Edwina Gibbs and Jan Harvey)
