Petroleum Industry: Formation, Structure, and Supply Chain

Petroleum industry 1
Petroleum Industry
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Petroleum industry 2
Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................2
The formation and origin of oil and gas..........................................................................................3
The structure and history of oil and gas industry............................................................................3
International Oil Companies............................................................................................................4
National Oil Companies..................................................................................................................5
Government Sponsored Enterprises................................................................................................5
The supply chain of oil and gas.......................................................................................................5
Stream, Upstream, Midstream and Downstream.........................................................................6
Oil and Gas products.......................................................................................................................6
Comparison between gasoline and liquified natural gas..............................................................6
Differences...............................................................................................................................6
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................8
References........................................................................................................................................9

Petroleum industry 3
Introduction
The petroleum industry is one of the largest sectors globally in terms of dollar value since
the industry produces billions of dollars every year (Yusuf et al, 2014, pg. 537). Besides, the oil
and gas industry contribute significantly towards the national GDP of countries that house
industry. The petroleum industry involves major areas such as; upstream industry, midstream
industry and downstream industry. In this essay, I will focus more on gasoline or in other words
petrol. Gasoline is the primary petroleum product in crude oil and also its a basic material for a
wide range of chemical products such as plastics, pharmaceuticals, solvents and fertilizers. Based
on the question, on what constitutes the oil and gas supply chain, different subjects will be
handled. To begin with, we have the formation and origin of oil and gas, structure and history of
the oil and gas industry, differences between National Oil Companies, International Oil
Companies and Government-Sponsored Enterprises, and lastly the contrast in the supply chain
involved in oil and gas.
The formation and origin of oil and gas.
Through the early 1900’s, oil exploration was largely a matter of luck. Oil explorers
basically looked for either type of rock outcrops, oil seeps at the surface or other minor surface
signs that oil would be below the ground (Offshore engineering, 2016). The origin of petroleum
is still under dilemma in spite the tremendous researches conducted on the subject. There are two
theories that try to explain the origin of petroleum and they are organic and inorganic origin.
Beginning with organic origin, petroleum is said to have been formed from organic matter from
plants and animals deposited in a marine environment thereby remaining buried for million of
years under anoxic conditions. Therefore, the increase in temperature and pressure gradually
transformed the organic matter into hydrocarbons (Psac, 2018).
On the other hand, the inorganic origin suggests that hydrogen and carbon collided
together under great pressure and temperature below the earth surface hence forming gas and oil
(Walters, 2017, pg. 361). The gas and oil then seeped through porous rock and was deposited in
natural underground traps. There are different theories that describe the inorganic origin of
petroleum and they include; the volcanic theory, earthquake theory, metal carbide theory, and
serpentinization theory.