North Sea Brent Crude Oil - Origins & Facts

By Jack Kane

North Sea Brent Crude was originially discovered in the early part of the 1960's and is refined and consumed by; the UK, Norway, Denmark, Germany, and the Netherlands.

Brent Crude is one of many classifications of North Sea oil of which there are; Brent Crude, Brent Light, Sweet Crude, Ecofisk, Oseberg, and Forties. Brent crude is the biggest of all the classifications of North Sea oil, and its name originates from the bird the 'Brent Goose'. Exxon and Shell adopted a policy of naming their oil fields after birds. The 'Brent' field itself from which the crude was taken, was found by the Shell petroleum company in the North East of Shetland back in 1971.

North Sea Brent Crude is the benchmark crude and is used to price two thirds of the world's internationally traded oil on the golbal market. The other well known classifications include Dubai Crude and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) which is a lighter and sweeter form of crude oil. Crude oil is considered to be 'sweet' if it contains less 0.5% sulphur compared to the higher level of sulphur found in 'sour' crude oil. High quality crude with a low sulphur content is commonly processed into petroleum/gasoline.

In the North Sea and around the world the most highly prized form of oil is 'Light-sweet' crude, as it is the easiest to refine into gasoline, kerosene and high quality diesel.

The term 'Sweet' originated in the nineteenth century. In those days the early prospectors tasted and smelt the newly struck oil to determine its quality. The low levels of sulphur found in the oil provides it with a mildly sweet taste and pleasant aroma, the term has remained ever since.

About the Author:

0 comments:

Guides Complete