( BW)(NY-S&P) S&P Asgns Prelim Rtg in Vitol's Oil ABS Transaction

BW5268 MAY 09,2003 9:08 PACIFIC 12:08 EASTERN     Business Editors

    PARIS--(<a href=www.businesswire.com>BUSINESS WIRE)--May 9, 2003--Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said today it assigned its 'AAA' preliminary credit rating to the term certificates series 2003-1 to be issued by Vitol Master Trust.

    The certificates are backed by trade receivables originated by the Vitol group, one of the world's largest oil distibutors. The products include crude oil, fuel oil, gasoline, distillates (jet fuel and gas oil), LPG (liquefied petroleum gas), and naphtha. The receivables are generated by three entities: Vitol S.A. in Geneva and its branch in Houston, Vitol Energy S.A., Geneva, and Vitol Asia Pte Ltd., Singapore.

    The receivables pool has exhibited strong and stable collections performance. From January 1997, the annual net write-offs as a percentage of annual gross sales revenue have not exceeded 0.03%.

    "This strong performance reflects the nature of many of the obligors (state oil companies) and the importance of the underlying product," said Nicolas Malaterre, an associate director in Standard & Poor's European Structured Finance Ratings group in Paris.

    The Vitol group's major customers are multinational oil companies including Exxon Mobil Corp., Shell Oil Co., and British Petroleum Co. PLC, as well as national oil companies such as Indian Oil Corp., Petroleos de Venezuela S.A. (PDVSA), and Petroleos Mexicanos (PEMEX).

    The rating on the certificates reflects the credit quality of the underlying receivables and the minimum credit support, which dynamically adjusts on a monthly basis to provide coverage for a stressed level of historical portfolio losses and dilutions, as well as for note interest, servicing fees, trustee fees, and other expenses.

    The assets are also subject to strong eligibility criteria, a sound cash flow structure, and certain mechanisms that are in place to protect investors and ensure timely payment of interest and ultimate repayment of principal. Early amortization events include tests on the receivables' performance.

    Vitol Master Trust may after closing, and subject to Standard & Poor's rating confirmation, include additional originators of receivables and further series of notes may also be issued.

    The full presale report for this transaction was published today on RatingsDirect, Standard & Poor's Web-based credit analysis system, at www.ratingsdirect.com. The presale report can also be found on Standard & Poor's Web site at www.standardandpoors.com. Click on Fixed Income; then, in the left navigation bar under Browse by Sector, select Structured Finance; scroll down to Presale Credit Reports to locate the article. Alternatively, call one of Standard & Poor's Ratings Desks: London (44) 20-7847-7400; Paris (33) 1-4420-6705; Frankfurt (49) 69-33-999-223; or Stockholm (46) 8-440-5916. Members of the media may contact the Press Office Hotline on (44) 20-7826-3605 orvia media_europe@standardandpoors.com.

    ANALYST E-MAIL ADDRESSES     nicolas_malaterre@standardandpoors.com     StructuredFinanceEurope@standardandpoors.com

--30--MRO/se*

CONTACT: Standard & Poor's
         Nicolas Malaterre, Paris (33) 1-4420-7324

KEYWORD: NEW YORK FRANCE INTERNATIONAL EUROPE
INDUSTRY KEYWORD: BANKING BOND/STOCK RATINGS
SOURCE: Standard & Poor's