DL Refinery article

[General Lee]

Delta-owned Trainer refinery posts profit
By Linda Loyd, Inquirer Staff Writer
Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Delta Air Lines said Tuesday its refinery in Trainer, Delaware County, posted a $3 million profit for the three months ended Sept. 30.

It was the first quarterly profit since Delta bought the former ConocoPhillips refinery last year to supply itself with jet fuel.

"We have a tremendous opportunity with the Trainer refinery," Delta CEO Richard Anderson told investors on a conference call discussing third-quarter financial results. "Importantly, the refinery's production has proven to be effective in keeping jet cracks in check, particularly in the New York harbor."

The "crack spread" is the difference between the cost of crude oil and the selling price of jet fuel - it is the price paid to refiners.

Airlines can "hedge" the cost of oil by entering into long-term future contracts. But they cannot hedge the crack spread, or the refiners' profit margin, which fluctuates based on supply, demand, and market trends.

"Our next step is to improve the refinery's profitability through lower-cost domestic crude supply from the Bakken field, increase jet fuel output, and operational initiatives to improve throughput and product mix," Anderson said.




Bye Bye---General Lee

 

[scoreboardII]

Hope it keeps up for you. It just rings of the Pan Am days in buying hotels to offer a more complete service, but in reality coming out of your core competency. Just wondering why Ford or Chevy don't buy oil refineries to fuel the cars they sell.

 

[filejw]

It's not even close to the same as Pan Am buying hotels. Its is more about having some control of a commodity that's is 40% of your operating cost.When you hear upper managers speak of the refinery they almost seem like just coming out even is ok. The crack spread is what they like to talk about.

 

[scoreboardII]

The crack spread is what they like to talk about.

That's because it has the words "crack" and "spread" next to each other.

And yes it is even close. It's the exact same concept. If your comment was true, Ford and Chevy would own metal refineries and tire manufactures.

Look, if it's working, be happy, I'm fine, just pointing out that coming off your core competency is a risky proposition, and in the airline world, has not worked.

Even SWA was bit playing fuel futures instead of running an airline.

 

[General Lee]

Hope it keeps up for you. It just rings of the Pan Am days in buying hotels to offer a more complete service, but in reality coming out of your core competency. Just wondering why Ford or Chevy don't buy oil refineries to fuel the cars they sell.

Remember, the DL execs aren't running it day to day, rather they have oil people running it. Monroe Energy (Monroe, LA was the old DL headquarters and where DL started. DL actually had yearly shareholder meetings there until the mid 90's) runs it.

Bye Bye---General Lee

 

[Ticker]

Just wondering why Ford or Chevy don't buy oil refineries to fuel the cars they sell.

Well, they did once didn't they? I have vague memories of high school history teachers droning on about the "trusts" and the "trust busters". Didn't one of the car manufacturers have oil, rubber, steel, etc. companies under it's umbrella? Maybe that was standard oil I'm thinking of. I can't recall high school course work all that well. I was a bit pre-occupied with...well...other things.

 

[filejw]

Well, they did once didn't they? I have vague memories of high school history teachers droning on about the "trusts" and the "trust busters". Didn't one of the car manufacturers have oil, rubber, steel, etc. companies under it's umbrella? Maybe that was standard oil I'm thinking of. I can't recall high school course work all that well. I was a bit pre-occupied with...well...other things.

Try Sherman Antitrust Act (1890)...

 

[dalad]

Hope it keeps up for you. It just rings of the Pan Am days in buying hotels to offer a more complete service, but in reality coming out of your core competency. Just wondering why Ford or Chevy don't buy oil refineries to fuel the cars they sell.

UAL also did it in the 1980's by buying I believe Hertz and a hotel chain. Didn't they also change their corporate name to reflect this? Score, you are referring to vertical monopoly, this refinery deal is nowhere close.

 

[DUBLINFLYER]

There is significant operating costs associated with running an oil refinery and equipment replacement costs are high, the refining process is very hard and demanding on equipment and it only takes one or two pieces of equipment to malfunction to shut down and stop production either the crude or jet fuel process lines.

 

[tailhookah]

It seems to be working well now. Time will tell. But with qtrs like the last I think they can handle it. I am sure even though they showed only a 3 million profit, it payed off to the operation far, far greater than just the 3 mil.

Tail

 

[SplitBar]

Hope it keeps up for you. It just rings of the Pan Am days in buying hotels to offer a more complete service, but in reality coming out of your core competency. Just wondering why Ford or Chevy don't buy oil refineries to fuel the cars they sell.

Ford and Chevy only have to fill up the tank once for a car that they sell. They do however own their own steel plants. Same concept.

 

[20sx]

It seems to be working well now. Time will tell. But with qtrs like the last I think they can handle it. I am sure even though they showed only a 3 million profit, it payed off to the operation far, far greater than just the 3 mil.

Tail

I'm sure if they can keep the price down by even a few cents that would have enormous savings. Well worth the cost of the refinery.

 

[scoreboardII]

Well, they did once didn't they? I have vague memories of high school history teachers droning on about the "trusts" and the "trust busters". Didn't one of the car manufacturers have oil, rubber, steel, etc. companies under it's umbrella? Maybe that was standard oil I'm thinking of. I can't recall high school course work all that well. I was a bit pre-occupied with...well...other things.

You are correct, Ford had it all. They made everything top to bottom. But remember, they did that because they had no supplier who could do it cheaper.

 

[scoreboardII]

There is significant operating costs associated with running an oil refinery and equipment replacement costs are high, the refining process is very hard and demanding on equipment and it only takes one or two pieces of equipment to malfunction to shut down and stop production either the crude or jet fuel process lines.

And this is the business point I make, DAL is accepting the risks of running a refinery. One bad snowstorm, one refinery fire, etc, it all goes out the window.

 

[scoreboardII]

Ford and Chevy only have to fill up the tank once for a car that they sell. They do however own their own steel plants. Same concept.

My intent was to say there could be Ford fuel stations all over the country, why isn't there? Same business concept of integration and core competency. This has no relation to vertical monopoly, it is vertical integration to control hold up problems more than cost.

Folks, it's working, good for Delta. But it is risky business, far more than hedging.

 

[SplitBar]

My intent was to say there could be Ford fuel stations all over the country, why isn't there? Same business concept of integration and core competency. This has no relation to vertical monopoly, it is vertical integration to control hold up problems more than cost.

Folks, it's working, good for Delta. But it is risky business, far more than hedging.

Comparing Ford/GM owning it's own fuel stations to Delta owning a refinery is an apples to oranges comparison. Ford doesn't need fuel stations like Delta needs Jet A.

 

[Quack]

Correct me if I am wrong, but doesn't Delta owning a refinery help the rest of the industry as well? If they can reduce the crack spreads and lower their fuel costs, wouldn't that put pressure on the competing fuel companies who supply United, American, SWA, etc to lower their pricing or become a little more competitive? If so, I see it as a win win for the other carriers without the overhead.

 

[SplitBar]

Correct me if I am wrong, but doesn't Delta owning a refinery help the rest of the industry as well? If they can reduce the crack spreads and lower their fuel costs, wouldn't that put pressure on the competing fuel companies who supply United, American, SWA, etc to lower their pricing or become a little more competitive? If so, I see it as a win win for the other carriers without the overhead.

Yes, even if Delta loses $$ on the refinery they still come out ahead due to the pressure that it puts on the crack spreads. So, yes, other airlines benefit as well.

 

[zasca]

They make profit off the crack spread when oil is expensive and other refiners maintain the big spread. If oil goes down and the spread narrows, the airline makes profits off low fuel prices. It is a very good, low cost hedge for a company heavily dependent on a fluctuating commodity. (as long as nothing goes wrong with the plant)

 

[scoreboardII]

Comparing Ford/GM owning it's own fuel stations to Delta owning a refinery is an apples to oranges comparison. Ford doesn't need fuel stations like Delta needs Jet A.

It's not apples to oranges. It's at worst Macintosh to Ruby Red. If you control all the aspects of a product start to finish in vertical integration, then controlling the fuel to a car is exactly like controlling the fuel to the jet, sorry.

 

[Andy]

Well, they did once didn't they? I have vague memories of high school history teachers droning on about the "trusts" and the "trust busters". Didn't one of the car manufacturers have oil, rubber, steel, etc. companies under it's umbrella? Maybe that was standard oil I'm thinking of. I can't recall high school course work all that well. I was a bit pre-occupied with...well...other things.

Standard Oil. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standard_Oil

Correct me if I am wrong, but doesn't Delta owning a refinery help the rest of the industry as well? If they can reduce the crack spreads and lower their fuel costs, wouldn't that put pressure on the competing fuel companies who supply United, American, SWA, etc to lower their pricing or become a little more competitive? If so, I see it as a win win for the other carriers without the overhead.

Some jerk wrote this back in June:

Delta's Trainer refinery has been a success in reducing the JetA crack spread. A 'normal' refinery produces ~9% JetA as its final product. Delta was looking for mid-30s JetA for its final product; I've read it's 'only' running in the high 20s. Frankly, that's a huge success in reducing JetA crack spreads. The much higher percentage of JetA production vs other oil based products cannot be understated. This is a huge benefit for all airlines.

The problem with Delta being the only airline with a refinery is that all airlines (especially those that have large presence in the vicinity of Trainer - JetBlue, Yonited, US Scareways, American) benefit from the reduced crack spread. So to measure Trainer's performance by traditional profit/loss metrics is a bit flawed.
Bottom line: on paper, Trainer may appear to be a money loser, but the reduction of JetA crack spread will likely make it a moneymaker for Delta. For the rest of the airlines, they will freeride off of Delta's refinery investment.

A lot of the northeastern refineries have been closing due to refined gasoline being shipped from Europe. There has been a shift in European vehicles from gasoline to diesel, and as a result their refineries produce excess auto gasoline - that gasoline gets shipped to the east coast. But they're not shipping jet fuel to the east coast. As a result, there was less jet fuel produced on the east coast, driving up jet fuel crack spreads. With Trainer being tweaked to produce a much higher percentage of refined product as jet fuel, the jet fuel crack spread has dropped considerably.

They make profit off the crack spread when oil is expensive and other refiners maintain the big spread. If oil goes down and the spread narrows, the airline makes profits off low fuel prices. It is a very good, low cost hedge for a company heavily dependent on a fluctuating commodity. (as long as nothing goes wrong with the plant)

Crack spreads aren't based on raw material input prices (ie the price of a barrel of oil). Crack spreads are more a function of supply and demand.

The Trainer refinery provides Delta with a crack spread hedge. It does not provide a hedge on the price of a barrel of oil.


By driving down the cost of jet fuel on the East coast, Trainer is more successful than simply a $3 million profit. Here's an example; while New York jet fuel prices were dropping, New York refined gasoline prices were rising in April: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-...l-hits-all-time-low-as-inventories-build.html

 

[SplitBar]

It's not apples to oranges. It's at worst Macintosh to Ruby Red. If you control all the aspects of a product start to finish in vertical integration, then controlling the fuel to a car is exactly like controlling the fuel to the jet, sorry.

Ford owning gas stations does not help control Fords current cost structure. Delta owning a refinery does help control Deltas costs. Apples to Oranges, sorry.

 

[Diesel-9]

I will bet you another refinery is to be purchased on the west coast within 18 months.

 

[scoreboardII]

Ford owning gas stations does not help control Fords current cost structure. Delta owning a refinery does help control Deltas costs. Apples to Oranges, sorry.

It does if they sold gas at point of purchase.

 

[scoreboardII]

Ford owning gas stations does not help control Fords current cost structure. Delta owning a refinery does help control Deltas costs. Apples to Oranges, sorry.

I said it would be like, not that it is, I said it would be as if Ford supplied the fuel as part of the contract to sell the vehicle. Vertical integration.

 

[flyboyike]

My intent was to say there could be Ford fuel stations all over the country, why isn't there?

I don't know, but my 2006 Focus had a label on its fuel cap stating "Ford recommends BP/Amoco". My 2012 Focus has no such label, however.

 

[scoreboardII]

sigh.........

 

[wood pecker]

Any Texas refineries for sale? Maybe that's how we will hit 15%

 

[BOX OFFICE]

Car makers have owned steel mills, tire factories, etc.

http://www.thehenryford.org/rouge/historyofrouge.aspx

Located a few miles south of Detroit at the confluence of the Rouge and Detroit Rivers, the original Rouge complex was a mile-and-a-half wide and more than a mile long. The multiplex of 93 buildings totaled 15,767,708 square feet of floor area crisscrossed by 120 miles of conveyors. There were ore docks, steel furnaces, coke ovens, rolling mills, glass furnaces and plate-glass rollers. Buildings included a tire-making plant, stamping plant, engine casting plant, frame and assembly plant, transmission plant, radiator plant, tool and die plant, and, at one time, even a paper mill. A massive power plant produced enough electricity to light a city the size of nearby Detroit, and a soybean conversion plant turned soybeans into plastic auto parts.

 

[Uncle Bunkle]

Refinery says what?