Petroleum Business Review

Abstract The Strait of Hormuz, as one of the world’s most strategic energy chokepoints, plays a vital role in the maritime trade of crude oil and natural gas, and many Asian economies are heavily dependent on it. Following the onset of the 2026 tensions and conflicts, vessel traffic in the strait has sharply declined, with more than 95% of shipping flows disrupted. Daily vessel crossings have dropped from several per day to nearly zero, with only a few limited transits permitted under special authorization. The absence of effective alternative routes—especially for countries reliant on energy exports through this passage—has placed significant pressure on global markets and heightened concerns about the stability of supply. Under such circumstances, Asian markets, the primary destination for oil and gas passing through Hormuz, face the greatest vulnerability. If this situation persists, rising transportation costs and escalating geopolitical risks could seriously challenge the stability of the global energy market. The geopolitical importance of the strait means that any disruption extends far beyond the region, producing immediate consequences for energy and financial markets as well as national economies. For energy exporters, this results in reduced foreign‑exchange revenues, while energy importers face higher costs, inflationary pressures, and slower economic growth. Utilizing an analytical–descriptive approach and a multilayer scenario‑building framework

Abstract Currently, distribution of various types of petroleum products is performed exclusively by the government. The high price of land in metropolitan cities, lack of incentive for the private sector to invest in construction of filling station due to the low-income, have caused filling stations to be insufficiently available. One of the solutions to overcome this obstacle is to use the ability of the private sector for distribution of petroleum products. To reduce the government's ownership, the market structure for petroleum products distribution in the country needs to be changed. This change should be firstly done gradually and step by step, and secondly, the government has to monitor this issue at various stages. In this study, three stages are proposed for the market restructuring of the petroleum products distribution in the country, and the conditions and requirements for each stage are separately identified.
For the private fuel distributing companies, the most important problem is the economic issue and having profit. On the other hand, since the product price is still subsidized in the country, therefore, it is indispensable that the amount of commission fee should be determined in such a way that the activity for private companies is economically justified.
In this study, the amount of products commision fee is calculated concerning capital and operatational expenditures, using the engineering economics method in different situations by COMFAR version 3 software.