Comprehensive training courses for your African downstream energy activities.


CITAC training courses will equip you with the necessary competencies and practical solutions you need to gain a full understanding of the African downstream market, improve your performance and reduce your risks.

Choose from a wide range of courses for the downstream industry covering trading, operations, finance, supply chain, LNG, shipping and more.

Held throughout Africa, all our training courses are led by highly experienced trainers, who are all leaders in their respective fields.
Language: English
Abuja, Nigeria

African Oil Market Fundamentals (October 2025)

7-9 October 2025

Major changes are sweeping across West Africa: exchange rate policy changes, subsidy withdrawal, specification changes and broader liberalisation. This course provides essential training to adapt to this new oil product trading environment. New opportunities are appearing – enhance your skillset to take advantage.

The course will cover:

  • Global crude and products market fundamentals
    • Crude and products markets overview: supply, demand, flows
    • Supply and demand economics & market drivers
    • Understanding the market players & their roles
    • International trading of crude oil and crude evaluation
    • A non-technical introduction to refining
    • A Trader’s view of refining
    • Quality differences around the globe
  • African price structures in an international context
    • Pricing in oil markets and price discovery
    • Pricing agencies
    • Benchmarks
    • Contract types, incoterms and issues
      – Spot / Term
      – Spot / Forward
      – FOB / CIF

      • Fixed versus floating
      • African pricing: benchmarks & differentials
      • Moving the oil (the shipping process)
      • Vessel types and standards
      • Understanding and calculating freight costs (Worldscale, Flat Rates, AFRA)
      • Price structures & regulatory distortions
      • Currency dynamics
      • Import parity pricing vs downstream pricing
  • Operations
    • Chartering and charterparty basics
    • African refining landscape: new additions, Dangote
    • Importing products into Africa
    • Vessel scheduling & demurrage
    • Tenders (term and spot)
    • Pricing options
    • Credit
    • Inland logistics
    • Retail & B2B dynamics

Course consultant : Jeremy Parker, Senior consultant

Language: English
Accra, Ghana

Oil Product Trading & Operations (November 2025)

24-28 November 2025

CITAC’s Trading and Operations Course gives an insight into the crude oil and products trading markets and the operations and control of supply contracts, including shipping.

This five day course will cover and discuss the following topics:

  • New market dynamics
    • Impact of Dangote refinery
    • Effect of new exchange rate regime
    • Rewiring of smuggled product
    • Introduction of new product specifications
  • Pricing in oil markets
    • Benchmarks and differentials
    • Price makers and price takers
  • Trading oil
    • Market participants
    • Oil contracts and clauses
    • Product quality
    • Deal negotiations
  • Refining industry
    • Refining economics
  • The operations process
    • Documentation
    • Role obligations and rights
    • Letter of credit
    • Letter of indemnity
    • Cargo inspection
    • Areas of contention
    • Breach
    • Dispute resolution
  • The shipping market
    • Chartering
    • Freight costing and worldscale rates
    • Vessel vetting and nomination
    • AFRA rates and demurrage

This course is designed for those interested in gaining a thorough understanding of the
International oil trading business.

Course consultant : Christopher Heilpern, Business and Training consultant

Language: French
Lomé, Togo

Reflecting reality in “IPP” and “downstream” price structures in Sub-Saharan Africa: Principles and Methods (March 2026)

17th-19th March 2025

This training will be in French and will provide participants with a deep understanding of the “import parity” and “pump parity” models in Africa, including how they are administered in specific markets. Participants will learn to understand and identify anomalies in comparison to industry best practices, as well as propose solutions.

Course consultant : James McCullagh, CITAC Executive Director

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