Jet fuel demand nose-dives worldwide

The amount of air travel, or dramatic lack of it at Oklahoma City’s Will Rogers World Airport explains why there has been a plunge in demand for jet fuel as the COVID-19 pandemic affects travel, not just in Oklahoma but across the globe.

Rystad Energy came out with new analysis this week saying global oil demand for jet fuel, the kind manufactured at refineries in Ardmore and Wynnewood, Oklahoma evaporated to 35% of normal levels in April and May. A record low 95,130 people were screened at airport checkpoints on Tuesday by the Transportation Security Administration compared to more than 2 million this time last year.

Will Rogers World Airport in Oklahoma City was no different. A report this week by the Oklahoman indicated scheduled flights were down nearly half compared to a year ago, all because of the continuation of the coronavirus pandemic. In the first two weeks of this month, the average number of flights per week was 278 compared to 506 last year at the same time period.

Rystad predicts that jet fuel demand will gradually pick back up, but by December will still be far lower than pre-coronavirus levels.

The Valero Ardmore refinery is one of those operations where jet fuel is manufactured in southern Oklahoma. It produces jet fuel as well as gasoline, kerosene, sulfur, diesel, liquefied petroleum gas, propylene, butaine and others.

The CVR refinery in Wynnewood  produces military jet fuel. The refinery has a capacity of 74,500 bpcd in crude capacity. It also produces gasoline, diesel fuel, solvents and asphalt.

Source: Rystad