Specialist
Principal at The Tank Tiger LLC
Agenda
- Oil and refined products storage industry overview
- Competitive landscape and key players' positioning
- Storage economics and capacity limits
- 2020 outlook
Questions
1.
How much does it cost to store crude oil today? How much has this increased in 2020 so far?
2.
You said storage contracts in Cushing are USD 0.55 per barrel. Over what term is that – per day, month or year?
3.
Do storage costs differ across refined product type, such as gasoline, diesel and jet fuel?
4.
The typical storage cost is USD 0.50 per barrel per month, as you mentioned. What price range has there been?
5.
You said traders went into action and started calling you following the 8 March announcement. Were they seeking storage for barrels from the Opec region? Did they anticipate oil coming from other sources?
6.
There are concerns that we will run out of places to store oil. How long do you think the available storage will last?
7.
Where have refiners started curtailing their production? How is that showing in the market?
8.
How much storage is available in North America or the US specifically?
9.
How quickly do you foresee US crude inventories rising, considering they have not returned to 2017 levels?
10.
How has lifting the crude oil export ban in late 2015 changed the dynamics of the US storage industry?
11.
How might the import-export dynamic resolve itself? Will imports curtail US production or will the US continue producing for a while?
12.
What crude oil grades are most difficult to store?
13.
Is any one US-type crude particularly difficult to store compared to the others, perhaps a crude from a certain region or heavy- and sour-type crudes?
14.
Do you think floating storage tankers are an option?
15.
How big is the floating tanker market relative to fixed storage?
16.
How important are railcars? Could they be a viable storage option?
17.
How are pipeline operators handling the current situation? What visibility do they have? Do they tell producers to stop producing?
18.
You mentioned that building a storage tank takes around six months. What does it cost storage? Has much storage building been taking place?
19.
Oil prices have been volatile, but has there ever been an issue with paying bills, in your experience?
20.
Where is it difficult or impossible to build storage in the US, besides California?
21.
Do you think strategic petroleum reserves in the US can help? What role have they played and where are they?
22.
You mentioned USD 20 per barrel, but I’ve seen media stories about potentially negative prices in some areas. Do you foresee this happening? If so, what could cause it and would it be temporary?
23.
How much busier has your business been this year due to everything we have discussed? What areas have become particularly busy?
24.
You said there is a political situation with Saudi Arabia. What would happen if Saudi Arabia and Russia ended their market share war? Could that happen soon?
25.
The last time the refined product storage market was in contango was in 2015-17, during which inventory started to draw. What signals do you think should be monitored?
