Crude Oil Quality Association

Supporters

Welcome to the Crude Oil Quality Association!

The Crude Oil Quality Association (COQA) is dedicated to the belief that maintaining the integrity and consistency of the refining characteristics of crude oil streams is of importance to all parties involved in crude oil activity, from production locations to the refinery.

To this end, we hold three meetings annually. These meetings are open to the public and we welcome your attendance and involvement.

Upcoming Events

COQA San Antonio, March 4-5, 2020

Dates: 04 – 05 Mar, 2020

Save the date and plan to join us for the COQA's Spring 2020 meeting in San Antonio, TX.

Venue
Our venue will be the Menger Hotel
(204 Alamo Plaza, San Antonio, TX 78205)

Registration

General Registration
*registration will also be available on site by credit card for $125
Complimentary Registration
*for representatives of annual corporate members (sponsors/supporters), event sponsors, speakers, retirees, press

Guestrooms

Please click HERE to book your guestrooms in the COQA room block at our preferred rate, available until February 10, 2020 (or until the block fills up).

Program of Events
All meetings will take place in the Grand Ballroom

Wednesday, March 4, 2020

1:30 - 2:15pm Domestic Sweet Subcommittee
2:30 - 3:30pm Additives Subcommittee
3:30 - 4:30pm Advisory Board Meeting
4:30 - 6:00pm Executive Board Meeting

Thursday, March 5th, 2020

7:00 - 8:00am Breakfast Buffet provided by COQA
8:00 - 11:45am Presentations
11:45am - 1:30pm Lunch (on your own)
1:30pm - 4:30pm Presentations

Speakers (tentative topic/title)

Kari Cutting, North Dakota Petroleum Council (Bakken 2020: A Game Changer)

Jeff Dorrow, EPIC Midstream (Assets overview and quality control initiatives)

Erika Coombs, BTU Analytics (Permian and Eagle Ford quality overview)

Gus Vasquez, Argus Media (Shifting price differentials and grades from Midland to Corpus Christi to Europe)

Eric Vetters, ProCorr Consulting (Upstream additives – how they can impact refineries and what we as an industry can do about it)

Jason Nick, Ametek Petrolab (What's New in the World of Vapor Pressure)

Tom Benz, Southern Petroleum Laboratories (UOP 163, D5705M and other related topics on H2S in the Permian)

Terry Thompson, Enterprise Products (Vapor pressure and emissions standards for crude oil storage)

Plus:
Reviews of the 2nd Annual North American Crude Oil Exports Summit & Argus Americas Crude Summit

And:
Extensive Information on our exciting upcoming conference in Ft McMurray, Canada

Sponsors
Silver

Bronze



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CCQTA - COQA Joint Meeting, Ft. McMurray, Canada, June 9-12, 2020

Dates: 09 – 12 Jun, 2020

Save the date and plan to join us for the joint CCQTA - COQA Summer 2020 meeting in Ft. McMurray, Canada.

Please be sure to budget and prepare early for this rare opportunity to visit the Canadian oil sands with an international group of crude quality experts. There is LIMITED space available for the oil sands tour, so register early and secure your spot.

Please view this Information Packet for details on the program of events, registration, guestroom booking (again, space is limited in the hotel), and transportation. If you wish to inquire about speaking or sponsorship, please use the contact information provided in the packet.

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COQA Houston/Sugar Land, Oct 21-22, 2020

Dates: 21 – 22 Oct, 2020

Save the date and plan to join us in Sugar Land for our Fall 2020 COQA meeting. Details regarding the program of events, registration, and guestroom booking will begin to appear in summer 2020.

We are once again partnering with the Opportunity Crudes Conference, which will be held at the same venue, from Oct 19-21, 2020. Plan to attend for the entire week!

Venue: Houston Marriott Sugar Land (16090 City Walk, Sugar Land, TX 77479)

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News and Announcements

Turning Point Blog Features Crude Quality

by Dennis Sutton | Jul 18, 2019

Turner, Mason & Company publishes a weekly blog series titled “Turning Point” that covers various topics regarding the petroleum industry. The blog published July 16, 2019 titled “Suspicious Minds- Quality Challenges and Crude Oil Exports” highlights the growing US crude oil exports and looks at some of the quality challenges for new buyers and traders of these US export grades. The article addresses the differing quality specs on WTI, two recent worldwide quality incidents, and concludes with discussion on avenues to reduce suspicion and build a better path forward. The complete article is available HERE.
Cushing Tour Complements Oklahoma City Meeting

by Dennis Sutton | Jun 12, 2019

The mid year 2019 COQA meeting was held in Oklahoma City, OK May 30 at the downtown Skirvin Hotel, with a featured tour of the Cushing, OK terminal facility preceeding the meeting. Approximately 75 people participated in the Cushing tour, with over 115 present for the program.

Recent heavy rains did not dampen the spirits of the group as tour hosts Enterprise, Enbridge, and Plains offered an excellent overview of the activities and growth planned for Cushing that could bring total storage capacity to 100 million barrels, while Intertek hosted a barbeque lunch for the group. Bloomberg’s Sheela Tobben’s June 4 article titled “Building Boom Shows Cushing Oil Hub Hasn’t Lost its Allure” provides a detailed look at the storage and pipeline projects planned for Cushing.

A blend of technical talks and broader, more commercial presentations having a mid-Continent emphasis highlighted the program. David Braziel (RBN Energy) addressed the effects of US exports and showed the largest projected production growth in the next 5 years coming from the Permian, Eagle Ford, and Bakken, while Europe and Asia have had the biggest gains in receiving US crude. Dan Brusstar of CME Group updated the group on the recently implemented WTI specs emphasizing that all refiners, both domestic and foreign, benefit from stable and certain quality. Josh Baskett of Continental Resources, the #1 producer of Bakken crude, discussed the future of marketed barrels, including some of the concerns expressed by foreign buyers of US crude. In particular, international buyers have been leery of US barrels due to some receipts being poorer quality than expected, and concerns of inconsistent quality. Chris Baltimore’s (Argus) article on the meeting titled “Survey: Quality is King” emphasized the WTI specs and noted COQA’s role in developing them.

Complete details of the presentations are available under the “Meeting Archives” tab on the top of the page.
First European Crude Quality Forum held in Aberdeen, Scotland

by Bill Lywood | Aug 30, 2018
On July 25, the first ever European Crude Quality Forum was hosted by Intertek at their research and laboratory facility in Aberdeen, Scotland. Coordinated by Dr. Frederick Stubbins of Intertek, the program included a buffet lunch followed by a half day of technical presentations including:
- Andrew Duncan, Intertek- Asset Integrity Management
- Duncan Baillie, LUX Assure- What’s In Your Crude?
- Frederick Stubbins, Intertek- Total Quality Assurance from Well Stream to Forecourt
- Dennis Sutton, COQA- Introduction to the COQA; An overview of North American Crude Oil Quality
- Katharine Fogg, Essar Oil UK- Opportunity Oil Processing in European Refineries
- Ruth Downie, Infineum- Wax and Asphaltenes
Over 40 attendees participated in the event and provided lively, open discussion.
Platts Capitol Crude podcast highlights COQA efforts

by Dennis Sutton | Jul 03, 2018

The July 2, 2018 Capitol Crude podcast produced by Platts addresses the confusion regarding WTI crude oil and highlights the work of the COQA that has led to the adoption by CME/NYMEX of more comprehensive quality specifications for WTI at Cushing. The podcast features discussion by John-Laurent Tronche, managing editor, Platts Americas crude oil, and Dennis Sutton, executive director of the Crude Oil Quality Association. To listen to the podcast, click here.