Sweet crude oil
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sweet crude oil is a type of petroleum. Petroleum is considered "sweet" if it contains less than 0.5% sulfur,[1] compared to a higher level of sulfur in sour crude oil. Sweet crude oil contains small amounts of hydrogen sulfide and carbon dioxide. High quality, low sulfur crude oil is commonly used for processing into gasoline and is in high demand, particularly in the industrialized nations. "Light sweet crude oil" is the most sought-after version of crude oil as it contains a disproportionately large amount of these fractions that are used to process gasoline, kerosene, and high-quality diesel. The term "sweet" originated because the low level of sulfur provides the oil with a mildly sweet taste and pleasant smell. Nineteenth century prospectors would taste and smell small quantities of the oil to determine its quality. [2]
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[edit] Producers
Producers of sweet crude oil include:
The Appalachian Basin Eastern North America: Pennsylvania Grade Crude Oil.
- Some Mid-Continent Oil Field United States: (Louisiana Sweet) and (West Texas Intermediate a.k.a. Texas Light Sweet).
The North Sea area of Northern Europe: Norway and United Kingdom (Brent Crude).
North Africa: Libya and Algeria. Western Africa: Nigeria. Central Africa: Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo and Angola.
The Far East: China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, India,Vietnam and Australia.
[edit] Pricing
The term "price of oil", as used in the US media, generally means the cost per barrel (42 US gallons) of West Texas Intermediate Crude, to be delivered to Cushing, Oklahoma during the upcoming month.[3] This information is available from NYMEX (NYMEX website) or from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA oil prices)
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ BBC News. "Oil markets explained". July 14, 2003.
- ^ Light Sweet Oil [1].
- ^ Light Sweet Crude Futures (Description), NYMEX; Light Sweet Crude Futures (Specifications), NYMEX
