Petroleum refineries in the United States produce about 19 to 20 gallons of motor gasoline and 11 to 12 gallons of ultra-low sulfur distillate fuel oil (most of which is sold as diesel fuel and in several states as heating oil) from one 42-gallon barrel of crude oil.
https://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/faq.php?id=327&t=9
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there are actually over 160 different oils traded on the market theses days, but for simplicity’s sake, let’s discuss the three primary oils that get most of the serious attention in the news and in the markets.
West Texas Intermediate (WTI) is an extremely high quality crude oil which is greatly valued for the fact that it is of such premium quality, more and better gasoline can be refined from a single barrel than from most other types of oil available on the market.
The WTI “API Gravity” is 39.6 degrees, which makes it a “light” crude oil, with only 0.24 percent sulfur, which makes it a “sweet” crude oil. The term “API Gravity” refers to the “American Petroleum Institute Gravity, which is a measure that compares how light or heavy a crude oil is in relation to water. If an oils “API Gravity” is greater than 10 then it is lighter than water and will float on it. If an oils “API Gravity” is less than 10, it is heavier than water and will sinks.
These combined qualities as well as location make WTI a prime crude oil to be refined in the United States, which is by far, the largest gasoline consuming country on the planet. The vast majority of WTI crude oils are refined in the Midwest and Gulf Coast regions. Even with production of WTI crude oil in decline, WTI is often priced from $5 to $7 higher per barrel than “OPEC Basket” oil and on average, $1 to $2 higher per barrel than “Brent Blend” oils.
Brent Blend is actually a combination of different oils from 15 fields throughout the Scottish Brent and Ninian systems located in the North Sea. Its “API Gravity” is 38.3 degrees, which makes it a “light” crude oil, but clearly not quite as “light” as WTI. It also contains about 0.37 percent sulfur, which makes it a “sweet” crude oil, but then again, not quite as “sweet” than WTI.
Brent Blend is quite excellent for making gasoline and middle distillates, both of which are utilized in large quantities in Northwest Europe, where Brent blend crude oil is most often refined. Brent Blend production, much like that of WTI, is also on the decline, but it remains a major benchmark for other crude oils in Europe or Africa. Brent Blend oil price is often priced at a $4 higher per barrel compared to the OPEC Basket price.
OPEC Basket oil is a collective seven different crude oils from Algeria, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Nigeria, Dubai’, Venezuela and the Mexican Isthmus. The acronym OPEC stands for “Organization of Petroleum-Exporting Countries” which is an organization that was formed in 1960 in order to create some common policy for the production and sale of oil within its jurisdiction.
Because OPEC oil has a much higher percentage of sulfur within its natural make-up and therefore is not nearly as “sweet” as WTI or even Brent Blend and since it is also not naturally as “light” as well, the prices of OPEC oil are normally consistently lower than either Brent Blend or WTI. However, OPEC’s willingness or ability to quickly increase production when necessary makes OPEC a consistent “Major Player” in the oil industry!
https://oilprice.com/Energy/Crude-Oil/A-Detailed-Guide-On-The-Many-Different-Types-Of-Crude-Oil.html
Thanks!