Trafigura’s LNG chief to lead the company’s Asian oil unit

Trafigura, one of the world’s largest commodities trading firms, said it has appointed the company’s chief of liquefied natural gas (LNG) as its head of oil in Asia.

“We can confirm that Hadi Hallouche, current head of Natural Gas, LNG, Naphtha & Condensates Trading has been appointed Head of Oil Asia, in addition to overseeing the gas business globally,” a Trafigura spokeswoman said in an emailed statement on Thursday.

Hallouche joined Trafigura in 2011 as an LNG trader in the Geneva office and is now transitioning to the company’s Singapore office.

Martin Urdapilleta, the current head of Trafigura’s oil division in Asia, has accepted a new role based in Latin America helping manage and co-ordinate the downstream assets of Pampa Energia S.A. which are in the process of being acquired, the spokeswoman said.

Martin joined Trafigura almost 10 years ago and has worked in Buenos Aires, Geneva, Singapore and across biodiesel, distillates, naphtha, condensates and crude – as well as most recently managing the oil trading division in Asia, she added.

Worth mentioning here, Wood Mackenzie said in a report earlier this year that four trading houses, including Trafigura, traded an impressive 9 percent of total LNG sold worldwide in 2017.

Trafigura, Vitol, Gunvor and Glencore were “dominating” the LNG trading landscape and these four firms traded about 27 million tonnes of LNG last year, it said.

Trafigura’s LNG volumes rose 27 percent to 8.1 million tonnes in the financial year that ended September 30, as compared to 6.4 million tonnes a year ago.

During the year, Trafigura also expanded its global trading team to prepare for further growth and added strength in Singapore to reflect the increased geographical diversification of its LNG business.

LNG World News Staff