Turkish Petroleum Sector

Turkish Petroleum Sector 

       The over-all performance of the Turkish petroleum sector typically mirrors the political, legal, social and economic environment of the whole petroleum industry in the Gulf Area. The Turkish petroleum department outlook is heavily dependent on the country’s balance of payments status, the foreign currency exchange rate, inflation, the health of other European Union countries, the overall investor confidence in the market and the political leadership. Political stability in the Gulf Area also supports increased petroleum spending and manufacturing activities of by foreign institutional companies and private firms. Recently, the outbreak of political violence in the Middle East and the volatile political situation in Venezuela has resulted in fluctuating oil production and oil prices.

      The Turkish government features a wide diversity of petroleum products which
resembled varying modes of market leadership, marketing mixes and quality, governance, capital structures, planning permission, marketing structures and accounting. These market-specific characteristics present reliable indicators regarding the economic status of Turkey.

     Turkey is not a major petroleum producer, however, its vast oil reserves is an indicator of its increasing role in the industry. The Oil & Gas Journal estimated in 2009 that Turkey’s proved oil reserves stood at 300 million barrels. The oil fields are located in the south-east region of the country. The oil production in Turkey has declined, reaching 45 thousand bbl/d in 2007. Its oilfields in the Hakkari Basin are old and expensive to exploit, and production costs in Turkey are considered quite high. In July 2003, Australia's Amity Oil reported a discovery at Adatepe. In 2007, state-owned Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO) started exploration in the eastern Mediterranean. The TPAO requested for foreign partners to assist them by jointly exploring the eastern Mediterranean area.

      The Turkish Directorate of Petroleum Operations is the government agency tasked with the marketing and distribution of petroleum products encompassing gasoline, diesel fuel, kerosene, home heating oil, bulk lubricants and motor oils. The Directorate is a major government agency which has the mandate of increasing the government revenues from international marketing. The Directorate is aggressively planning to come with a newly crafted strategic business plan so that it will achieve its three major goals and increase the organizations revenues and profits. The first major goal is to increase production of petroleum by 20% for 2011 by opening new oil wells. The second goal is to expand the geographical market by getting customers from Eastern Europe. The third major goal is to expand the customer market base to Central Asia and Southeast Asia.

      The Directorate’s mission is to enhance high customer appreciation while providing exceptional products and services through operational and marketing excellence in the field of petroleum products. The Directorate’s vision is to become the supplier of choice for petroleum and petroleum-related products in the Gulf Area by European and Central Asian countries. The Directorate channels its corporate social responsibility by investing in local communities where they maintain a marketing presence and fostering close interaction with our customers. The company diligently devotes the time and effort to make a contribution in our community and to give our customers the service, advice and competitive prices that enables them to attain profitable operations and businesses. In order to achieve these three major objectives, there is a need to revamp the Directorate’s International Marketing Department and there is a need for a new Strategic Plan that must be crafted with the major inputs coming from the key personnel of this public organization.  

The Directorate has three marketing objectives. The first marketing objective is to expand its marketing channels. Marketing channels are important to a firm’s distribution objectives. The first is specialization and the second is contractual efficiency. The principle of specialization refers to the assignment of distribution tasks to firms that possess the necessary expertise.

     The Directorate is faced with multiple distribution propositions. First Option- Open a new marketing network for oil in Eastern Europe. The marketing channel has two important parts: the physical distribution structure that moves a product from the manufacturer to the consumer or user and the consequent marketing structure that is established as a part of the channel of distribution to ensure the manufacturer that all marketing objectives are accomplished.

      The primary marketing objective of the Directorate is to profitably reach as many potential consumers of their products as soon as possible. The company can open a marketing branch in Hungary. Marketing branches remain a viable and important delivery channel for petroleum customers and is the primary location for new product sales. The advantages of a marketing branch are security, branch business productivity and continuity, financial transactions, risk management, compliance with new regulations and preserving customer trust by building customer trust.

      The marketing branches in new customer base areas can implement multiple sales promotions throughout the whole year through various sales contests and incentives. The organization can establish special promotional deals constituting special discounts offered for specific countries and wholesale buyers during a specified period of time. These pull promotions are directed at end-use customers and are designed to encourage them to request a product from channel members such as wholesalers, marketing retailers, or both.

      An internet only channel is an electronic marketing channel which enables clients to use banking and other financial services by employing various information technologies with no need for a direct contact with a bank clerk. This electronic banking is faster, better and cheaper. 

        The  Directorate can build a whole marketing strategy around high technology and quality. The issue of quality is a goal and a bond among all corporate functions. To exploit commitment opportunities, the bank can preempt its competitors. The business, however, has to be especially wary of environmental changes that can erode the value of its early investments. Size is beneficial only when there are compelling advantages to being large, such as economies of scale, scope, or experience. The Directorate can channel special advantages through preferred access to resources, information, or its customers can give the Directorate a sustainable advantage over its competitors by entering into exclusive and evolving petroleum marketing contracts.    

       The Directorate for Petroleum Operations will inform their international clients of the time schedule within which they can order petroleum products and the time of execution of orders for each individual state-of-the-art electronic marketing channel. Greater convenience for the customer enhances the purchasing experience, and greater service excellence reduces service mediocrity.

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