Crude oil is in high demand now, but markets fluctuate and increasing environmental regulations could make the market difficult in the long term.

Rather than sit back and see what happens, Saudi Aramco is working to shape the crude-oil business.
An aggressive research and technology programme is aimed at clean fuels and crude oil desulphurisation.
One initiative looks at improving the company's hydrocracker operations at Riyadh and Ras Tanura's refineries.
The Research and Development Center, along with other organisations, is collaborating with Nippon Oil Corp, a significant refiner of Saudi Arabian crude oil in Japan, and Catalyst and Chemicals Industrial Co (CCIC), a catalyst manufacturer in Japan, to develop catalyst solutions that improve hydrocracker performance.
A hydrocracker is a refinery unit that takes low-value, heavy refinery products and turns them into valuable products such as diesel fuel.
In the process of researching improved refinery products, people are developing their knowledge and skills.
In pursuit of people development and to enhance the cooperation between companies, a Technical Exchange Meeting on Hydrocracking Technology was held recently at Nippon headquarters in Tokyo.
Five Saudi Aramco engineers and scientists participated, delivering six of 11 papers on hydrocracking operations, modeling, catalyst development and process research.
The next annual technical exchange is to be hosted by Saudi Aramco in Dhahran in the fall of 2006.