European oil companies struggle to meet the challenge of an uncertain future
Oil companies have traditionally favored vertical integration, controlling the flow of oil from the drilling rig through refineries to the gasoline pump. The development of the downstream infrastructure has largely been driven by the retail market, with other fuels often treated as {open_quotes}marginal{close_quotes} businesses that leverage the retail distribution infrastructure. High-margin niche business such as lubricants and bitumen exist, but their volumes are typically small compared to the retail market. Other high-volume businesses such as aviation and heating fuels are closely tied to traded markets and generally have small market margins. Price levels at the retail site are crucial to the profitability of the downstream business. Price levels at European retail stations have historically been high when compared with North American prices, owing to government taxation. Despite the efforts of the oil companies to educate the consumer on what is the real cause of high prices, the oil majors are blamed when fuel prices fall, the consumer often feels as though lower prices had to be forced on the oil companies. Therefore, European consumers are more price sensitive than consumers elsewhere, and in markets which are deregulated on price, oil companies are losing market share to hypermarkets and supermarkets. In the U.S., increases in fuel tax levels are likely to result in a heightened price awareness for the average American, increasing the probability that hypermarkets will also enter the U.S fuels market.
- OSTI ID:
- 482547
- Journal Information:
- Fuel Technology amp Management, Journal Name: Fuel Technology amp Management Journal Issue: 4 Vol. 6; ISSN FTMAFH; ISSN 1087-4003
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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