Rotterdam oil storage takes a dive from flat consumption

Independent oil storage operators in Rotterdam are facing adverse trends while Antwerp volumes are up

The past two years have not been good ones for the independent storage operators of Rotterdam, by far the largest of the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp (ARA) oil gateways to Europe. Flat consumption and low refining margins have trimmed the logistical flows through the port, while backwardation in refined product prices – futures prices lower than prompt – has caused speculative storage to evaporate.  Earlier, the ARA ports had been benefiting from the growth in long-distance oil supply, with products coming in from the new refineries of Asia and other products going out to Asia’s consuming countries. But Asia’s lower consumption-growth has taken the edge off that trade, and increases in termin