Course Overview

What does a crude oil analyst do? A crude oil analyst is responsible for tracking and analysing details of crude oil trading activities, thereby understanding the requirements of consumers of natural gas, crude oil, finished products, etc.

Crude oil sampling, a part of this activity, involves extraction of a representative sample of the product from a pipeline for testing. Crude oil samplers should be able to handle any environmental condition. Crude oil quality testing is a critical process, and there are several methods to test various aspects of crude oil quality.

This Zoe training course will empower you with the complete skill set to become a successful crude oil analyst and trader. The course covers all critical aspects of crude oil sampling, testing and evaluation in detail, thereby providing you with the necessary experience and confidence to undertake responsibilities in these areas.

Through this course, you will also get more opportunities to showcase your skills and potential and invite multiple growth opportunities across many organisations.

Course Objectives

The primary objective of this Certified Crude Oil Trading Analyst (Sampling, Testing and Evaluation) training course is to empower professionals with—

• a comprehensive understanding of all aspects of crude oil analysis
• the required confidence and skills to train other aspiring crude oil analysts and traders
• complete clarity on various important aspects and concepts related to crude oil analysis, with a comprehensive understanding of when to use each method
• detailed knowledge and understanding of crude oil sampling and its various methods to ensure that samples obtained are representative and that the correct methods are chosen each time
• the necessary confidence, experience and knowledge to undertake crude oil testing and evaluation by the best-suited method, delivering high-quality results
• the awareness and understanding to identify any challenges during testing processes and mitigate these for accurate results
• the ability and potential to promote organisational growth and development by fostering better credibility and goodwill for the organisation
• the required understanding and information of guidelines and limitations during crude oil trading, including cross-boundary legislation and regulations
• enhanced analytical skills to identify appropriate data and draw useful conclusions to help define better growth strategies

Training Methodology

All courses at Zoe Talent Solutions are customisable as per the training audience. Thus, before each session, the content is thoroughly reviewed to check for changes.

The training is delivered by an experienced professional from the relevant domain. Two-way participation in the program is encouraged through group activities, projects, role-plays, etc. Experiential learning and situational analysis form an integral part of the training.

This mixed, unique approach to training by Zoe Talent Solutions is called the Do–Review–Learn–Apply Model.

Organisational Benefits

With professionals undertaking this Certified Crude Oil Trading Analyst (Sampling, Testing and Evaluation) training course, their organisations will benefit in the following ways:

• Effective, accurate crude oil analysis and trading managed by experienced and trained professionals
• Regular training of other employees on advanced concepts and methods
• Application of new methods and concepts of sampling to retrieve closely representative samples for accurate analysis
• Introduction of modern technology for crude oil testing to ensure that the results and conclusions are accurate, thereby building organisational credibility
• Identification of risks and challenges in trading and implementation of timely action to mitigate these and prevent impact to organisational development
• Adherence to legislation and regulations of crude oil trading, thus being established as a relevant, strong player in the market
• Employer branding because of robust training provided to employees to enhance their professional portfolios and increase their scope for career progression
• Organisational growth and development because of accurate analyses and evaluations, thereby building credibility and inviting prospective investors

Personal Benefits

Professionals enrolling for this Certified Crude Oil Trading Analyst (Sampling, Testing and Evaluation) training course will derive the following benefits:

• Comprehensive understanding of all aspects of crude oil analysis and trading to build a successful career in this domain
• Increased understanding and confidence to obtain good, representative samples for evaluation
• Greater knowledge of new concepts and methods for crude oil testing and evaluation to achieve closest and most accurate results
• Better understanding and information about required legislation and regulations to be followed for crude oil trading
• Enhanced analytical and strategic skills to interpret data and draw the most accurate conclusions to aid effective decision making
• Increased confidence and experience to train other professionals on all critical skills needed to become a successful crude oil analyst and trader
• Better awareness and understanding to choose the correct sampling and testing methods as per the requirement and circumstances
• Enhanced perspective and foresight to identify hindrances and challenges to sampling and testing and prevent these from affecting the results
• Greater potential and ability to contribute to organisational growth through effective sampling and testing, thereby increasing one’s scope for career progression across any organisation

Who Should Attend?

• Senior management members of an organisation involved in crude oil analysis and trading
• Employees partaking in the sampling and testing operations for an organisation
• Managers responsible for overseeing all sampling and testing operations
• Legal consultants and advisors responsible for ensuring that all regulations and legislations are adhered during sampling, testing and trading
• Quality checkers and auditors responsible for ensuring that samples and tests follow standard procedures and guidelines for effective results
• Any professional across any profile in the petroleum industry with aspirations to build a career as a crude oil analyst and trader
• Any other professional interested in being certified as a crude oil analyst and trader

Course Outline

The Certified Crude Oil Trading Analyst (Sampling, Testing and Evaluation) course covers the following areas important for one to become a certified crude oil analyst and trader:

Module 1 – Overview of Crude Oil

• Composition
• Characteristics
• Sampling protocol

Module 2 – Types of Crude Oil

• Very light oils
• Light oils
• Medium oils
• Heavy fuel oils

Module 3 – Products Derived from Crude Oil

• Gasoline
• Diesel fuel
• Heating oil
• Jet fuel
• Petrochemical feedstocks
• Waxes
• Lubricating oils
• Asphalt

Module 4 – Factors Influencing Categorisation of Crude Oils

• Viscosity
• Volatility
• Toxicity

Module 5 – Crude Oil Sampling

• Manual sampling
• Automatic sampling
• Representative sampling

Module 6 – Advantages of Representative Sampling

• Higher return on investment
• Better loss control
• Lower operating costs

Module 7 – Comprehensive Analyses and Fraction Evaluations

• True Boiling Point Distillation
• Gas
• Naphtha Fractions
• Kerosene
• Distillate Fuel Oil
• Vacuum Gas Oil Fractions

Module 8 – List of Crude Oil Assay Tests

• Atmospheric distillation
• Vacuum pot distillation
• Specific gravity
• Total acid number
• Vapour pressure
• Smoke point
• Freeze point
• Cloud point
• Pour point
• Refractive index
• Viscosity
• Wax content
• Others

Module 9 – Internal Controls for Crude Oil Quality

• Calibration of apparatus
• Technician testing
• Equipment maintenance
• Proper standards
• Sample handling

Module 10 – Factors Affecting Crude Oil Price Movements

• Outages or maintenance
• OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries)
• Oil suppliers
• Seasonality
• Oil consumers

Module 11 – Components of a Crude Oil Trading Strategy

• Fundamental analysis
• Technical analysis
• Risk management

Module 12 – Tools and Strategies for Oil Traders

• Futures curve
• Speculative positioning
• Futures and options
• Oil investing

Module 13 – Risks in Crude Oil Trading

• Market risks
• Basis risks
• Credit risks
• Operational risks
• Liquidity risks