Corrected (official): Singapore's IEG to start trading crude oil, tap China demand

Coolan

16/02/2017 01:54

(IEG corrects to state it has three traders, not one, in 
paragraph three) 
    * Plans to import crude oil, light oil components from west 
    * Expects to sell into China 
    * Eyes growing middle distillates exports from China 
 
    By Florence Tan and Jessica Jaganathan 
    SINGAPORE, Feb 15 (Reuters) - Singapore-based trading 
start-up International Energy Group (IEG) this year plans to 
expand its portfolio to crude oil from products such as gasoline 
and gasoil, looking to tap growing Chinese demand. 
    World No.2 oil consumer China posted record crude import 
growth in 2016 on demand from independent refiners, with 
shipments expected to increase again this year.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL4N1F31II 
    "We will probably look at importing crude and some light 
components (such as ethylene) from the West, particularly the 
U.S.," Artun Gursel, the company's book leader and trading 
manager, told Reuters on Tuesday. He is one of three traders at 
IEG. 
    IEG, a subsidiary of Singapore-listed New Silkroutes Group 
(NSG)  NEWS.SI , started trading oil products in 2015 by leasing 
storage in South Korea and selling fuel to Southeast Asian 
countries, said Gursel, declining to give trade volumes.  
    "There's growth in products trading in middle distillates 
because of exports from China," Gursel added, as well as noting 
the company would look to boosting trade with Southeast Asia. 
    IEG is also working with an asset management unit under 
parent company NSG to look at energy infrastructure investment 
that could support its oil trading. 
    "Oil markets are so transparent that business models that 
you develop tend to last no more than two years. So you have to 
control businesses under your own name through infrastructure 
investments," said Gursel. 
    "This environment of low oil prices and logistics costs will 
not stay," he said, adding that this is a good opportunity to 
acquire assets such as oil tankers or investing in distribution 
networks or terminals. 
    Earlier this month, NSG announced that it had bought an 
80-percent stake in New York-based CG Capital Markets Holdings, 
which will be renamed New Silkroute Capital. 
    The acquisition provides NSG access to western funds and a 
financial platform that allows it to accept the currencies of 
trading partners, such as the Chinese yuan, said IEG executive 
director Nelson Goh. 
 
 (Reporting by Florence Tan and Jessica Jaganathan; Editing by 
Joseph Radford) 
 ((Florence.Tan@thomsonreuters.com; +65 6870 3497; Reuters 
Messaging: florence.tan.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net)) 
 
Keywords: SINGAPORE OIL/