Opis Crash Course

With continued record high global temperatures and the effects of climate change continuing to take its toll on world economies, governments have come together to reduce carbon emissions. One key method is to put a price on emissions, forcing companies that pollute to pay to do so. Learn about global carbon credit markets and how investment in a new financial index can help fight climate change.

COVID-19 has decimated fuel demand, while an oil price war and OPEC+ announcements have ushered in extreme volatility for gasoline, diesel and jet fuel prices. In addition, ethanol prices have probed historic lows this year. OPIS editors Rachel Stroud-Goodrich and Jordan Godwin bring us up-to-date on the latest in traditional and renewable fuels prices.    

Gasoline and diesel prices have been utterly shaken in 2020 due to the destruction of fuel demand alongside efforts to stem the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus. But lying beneath overarching oil market volatility, each U.S. spot market has its own unique drivers, expected to shape prices this year. Understand these fundamentals to help anticipate what’s next.

Oil, gasoline & diesel prices in 2020 have already spiked & sputtered. Prices have been influenced by traditional factors like supply & demand, but also by wildcards like geopolitics & the COVID-19 coronavirus. OPIS Chief Oil Analyst Denton Cinquegrana shares his picks for key factors that have impacted 2020 fuel prices so far & will continue to do so in the year ahead.

IMO 2020 regulations are now in effect, with implications stretching to gasoline and diesel prices. Pat Hemsworth, Senior VP at Paragon Global Markets and Denton Cinquegrana, chief oil analyst at OPIS join the Crash Course for IMO 2020 specifics for refiners and  IMO 2020 price impacts for the bunker fuel market and beyond.

Mexico has been the setting for one of the biggest energy stories of the past decade after reform to bring private investment into the country to fulfill growing gasoline and diesel needs. There have been – and remain – hurdles to jump as the market opens. OPIS editors Daniel Rodriguez and Justin Schneewind talked to us about the evolving gasoline and diesel market landscape.

Natural Gas Liquids (NGL) prices dropped aggressively during  2019, opening up opportunities & challenges for exports of  propane, butane and ethane. We interviewed OPIS’ Bobbie Clark and IHS Markit’s Darryl Rogers for 2020 insights and a look ahead.

Find out how jet fuel is priced and what influences the rise and fall of prices in the U.S. market, which produces nearly 2 million barrels of jet fuel a day.

Oil price volatility is one of the many repercussions of a hurricane. In addition to damage to life and property, hurricanes can rattle fuel supply and demand. Using recent storms as examples, two OPIS experts take us inside scenarios that can play out in the gasoline and distillate markets.

Two OPIS experts give you the inside scoop on what happens inside a refinery. Find out the key units involved in producing various types of gasoline and distillate fuel, as well as what transpires when those units go offline for planned maintenance or unexpected downtime. Understand the connection between refinery units and gas and diesel prices and the options refiners have when output levels or fuel supply needs change.  

The clock is ticking ahead of dramatic changes to the fuel that global shipping fleets are allowed to burn. IMO 2020 regulations, reducing sulfur levels in bunker fuel, stand to have major repercussions for oil prices. But many unknowns remain. We turned to a professional on the ground at the Port of Rotterdam for hands-on advice on what’s to come and what’s next post-IMO 2020.

Once you have the physical side of your wholesale gas and diesel buying program in place, what steps can you take to offset fuel price volatility? In Part 3 of “The Efficient Fuel Buyer” series, OPIS’ Scott Berhang is joined by special guest Elaine Levin, president of Powerhouse, with strategies to protect your fuel buying budget.

Now that you have started your wholesale gas and diesel fuel buying program, you need to turn your attention to the physical side of your business. In Part 2 of “The Efficient Fuel Buyer” series,  OPIS’ Scott Berhang explains what that means and how you can leverage your unique buying patterns to maximize your fuel spend.

If you are new to buying wholesale gas and diesel, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. Not to worry! OPIS’ three-part podcast series “The Efficient Fuel Buyer” will help you get off and running. In Part 1, OPIS’ Scott Berhang explains the first things you should do when embarking on a fuel buying program.

Plastic is everywhere and, for companies that manufacture goods, the building blocks of plastics are major commodities that can eat into budgets. However, there’s a way to manage price risk. Here to explain is Kathy Hall, executive editor of OPIS PetroChem Wire, and Greg Ogborn, a veteran plastics procurement professional.

The year 2019 is in full swing and that’s going to mean swings in gasoline and diesel prices, too. In late January 2019, OPIS editors Bayan Raji and Rachel Stroud Goodrich took us on a 20-minute roundtrip around the major U.S. fuel price regions to give us a sense of what’s coming down the pipeline and how the spot markets influence each other.

The natural gas market has seen dynamic growth in the age of the shale boom. Find out how regulations governing natural gas infrastructure helped shape today’s landscape. OPIS’ Callie Kolbe takes us back to humble beginnings and massive expansions.

The fuel shipping fleets are allowed to use is poised for a drastic change. New IMO sulfur rules are geared at cleaning up air quality, but they stand to rattle the fuel supply chain, with big implications for diesel prices. Many questions remain, ranging from the availability of compliant fuel to how the industry will handle new regs. Listen, as marine fuel expert Tom Sosnowski, fills us in on what the industry can expect as the market looks ahead to 2020.

When you think of energy trading, fuel like gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and crude oil probably comes to mind. But did you know you can trade the permission to pollute? The latest episode of the Crash Course podcast gives you an overview of the carbon market, where traders, brokers, and so-called “obligated parties” buy and sell air emissions credits.

While flipping burgers in your backyard, take a few minutes to think about your propane tank. The propane in that cylinder, making those perfect grill marks possible, is a pretty interesting gas liquid that has a worldwide presence. Millions of barrels and gallons originate from a town you may have never heard of, called Mont Belvieu.