By Shariq Khan and Georgina McCartney
NEW YORK/HOUTON (REUTERS) – Warren Buffett’s Pilot Co ends its international oil trading activities and ends an excursion to the world market worth billions of dollars to concentrate on his pilot Flying J filling stations and truck stops in the US, three sources told Reuters on Tuesday.
The company, part of Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE :), has fired almost all employees who run international trade, say two sources that are familiar with the case. It will spend resources on the growth of his own North American companies, instead of trading, they said.
The pilot established in Knoxville, Tennessee is known for its gas stations and truck stops and started international trade after Berkshire Hathaway had taken an interest of 39% in 2017. The company, which is now fully owned by Buffett’s conglomerate, had hired a number of experienced energy traders in recent years. to build trading activities.
Among those who have recently been fired, there are the traders in distillate fuel Anthony Hicks and Nghiem Nguyen, according to three of the sources.
A handful of traders, including fuel trader Ajai Hari, is still at the company and concludes contractual obligations with customers, including the national oil company of Ecuador, Petroecuador, according to one of the sources.
Hicks, Nguyen and Hari did not respond to Reuters requests for comment.
Pilot did not comment on whether it left international trade, nor on the departure of the trader.
“Our core capacities are aimed at supplying reliable fuel supply to our travel centers and customers in North America,” said Gary Hoogeveen, president of Pilot Energy, in a statement shared with Reuters.
The company can tap into international markets to meet its delivery needs, says Hoogeveen.
Pilot started in 2023 with the shrinking of his energy trade activities and let go of 15 employees, including vice-president Steven Hollerbach, after Buffett had raised his interest in the company to 80%, Reuters reported earlier.
Buffett took over the remaining 20% of Pilot in January last year, after a legal dispute with billionaire Jimmy Haslam about the appreciation of the company. The profit before taxes halved from more than $ 2.3 billion in 2022 to $ 1.06 billion in 2023, according to documents from the supervisors. .
Since then, the willingness of Pilot for the risk associated with the international oil trade has decreased. In recent months, the company has released most of its international oil and fuel traders, according to two sources.
Pilot, founded by Haslam’s father Jim Haslam in 1958, operates more than 650 travel centers and 75 fuel locations. It also operates a wholesale wholesaler in fuel marketing and distribution and a company for the removal of water from oil fields.
In the first nine months of 2024, the income of pilot amounted to a total of more than $ 36 billion and the profit before taxes amounted to around $ 486 million, both a decrease on an annual basis, according to the last quarterly report of Berkshire Hathaway.
