CEO Insights Magazine

Many complex factors drive today’s oil & gas trading markets. The transition to a sustainable future requires a significant focus on innovation, and involatile strategies to set new industry standards. To power the future, we need leaders that can tame uncertainties, grab opportunities, and empower decisions. Praveen Jaiswal, CEO & Managing Director, Axiom Global Oil & Gas Trading is the perfect example. He is an industry expert with rich & extensive experience in the oil & gas industry possessing skill sets & knowledge that match international standards.

Praveen began his career in the oil & gas industry by joining the Indian Oil Corporation handling the entire gamut of downstream marketing of petroleum products and later became Vice President - Operations & HR for Lanka IOC. These experiences trained him in diverse fields ranging from operations to sales, industrial sales, foreign trade, and HR, and helped him in developing a holistic view of the industry. He has also spearheaded operations a t I ndian O il S kytanking h andling F uel F arm O perations & Fuel Hydrant System at Delhi International Airport, Chemoil Adani a JV of Glencore & Adani Group, Gulf Petrol Supplies (GPS, Bunkers) - a Fujairah National Group, and Al Iraqia Shipping Services & Oil Trading in various leadership positions.

At Axiom Global, he leads a unique mixture of talented and passionate industry experts. Together they share a joined vision of creating world-class solutions that benefit their customers, the industry, and the environment. Let’s hear it from him.

What led you to establish Axiom Global?

Having spent significant years in the oil & gas industry, we were able to lead interactions with global leaders and learn various segments of international trade. We have handled trading operations of fuel oil, and bunkering operations at all major ports of India, Sri Lanka, Iraq, Egypt & Fujairah as the Head of Trading Operations at a JV of Glencore & Adani Group. These stints gave us enough exposure to set up bunkering operations from ground zero. Hence, when in 2019 a lot of changes took place in the marine industry – the fuel specifications in marine drastically changed – we knew how to grab that opportunity to transform the Indian refineries market. We already had a stronghold in the Indian market. Leveraging that, in 2019, we decided to venture into the Indian space of bunkering and established Axiom Global. Today, we are one of the market leaders in not only the Indian but also the Middle Eastern market.

Tell us about your flagship offerings that enable customers to choose Axiom Global.

Axiom Global as a company specializes in the purchase, sale, and supply of marine fuel and lube oil to ships and oil terminals and meeting the requirements of the same in Indian Sub-continent, Middle East, and Far East Markets. Our main aim is to fuel the shipping industry and meet the constantly growing demand for energy across different markets. We are a team of expert professionals serving the oil & gas industry for over two decades. We leverage our collective experience to meet our vision. The shipping industry has seen our services in our past tenures and hence when we started this venture, customer confidence came naturally. We believe and practice in our motto, “our word is our bond”. So, any kind of trading works on commitment and honoring the contract. Also, our products & services are based on customers’ specifications which make customers trust our operations, company, and people.

What are the traits that best describe your leadership style?

I consider myself more of a team member rather than a team leader. In this venture, we work as a single team where everyone is a leader in his/ her role. There is no demarcation in this kind of industry. Human resource is our asset which brings revenue to the company. So, we acknowledge that and work together as one big family.

What kinds of market opportunities do you plan to invest your time in to ensure the growth of your company?

After successfully establishing our operations in various ports in India, Far East, Middle East, and our recent addition of Khorfakkan in the UAE, we are looking for more great opportunities to create a niche. Iraq is one of our success stories. We started our operations in Iraq when there was no organized bunkering infrastructure available. We were able to convince the local authorities and established a stable bunkering port. So, we keep on evaluating ports where we can start things from scratch; we are constantly in conversations with different port authorities, senior officials, and governments across different regions to grow our operations.

What advice would you give to budding business leaders?

In these 30 years of experience, I have learned that there is no replacement for hard work. Success is no accident. It is the result of hard work, perseverance, and very importantly love of what one is doing or learning to do. If the way of doing business was written in books, everybody could do it. One must learn from going deeper into the segments and should be forthright and honest in their approach to be a successful business leader.

Praveen Jaiswal, CEO & Managing Director, Axiom Global Oil & Gas Trading

Having an MBA from the Motilal Nehru Institute of Research & Business Administration and a Diploma in Shipping from the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers, Praveen is leveraging his unrivalled experiences gained from prominent companies to meet the global requirement of refined petroleum products.