Nishal V. Bhikha

Nishal Bhikha has 10 years of industry experience in downstream petroleum refining, refinery economics, linear programming, and process engineering. His expertise includes refinery operations, feedstock evaluation, planning, optimization, and strategic analysis across complex manufacturing environments. He specializes in integrating operational, economic, and commercial perspectives to support decision-making across refining and chemical value chains.

Nishal began his career with Cooper Tire & Rubber Company in 2016, supporting new product development, industrialization, and process-improvement initiatives. He joined ExxonMobil in 2019, where he held positions in process engineering, refinery supply, crude optimization, and refining economics. His experience includes capital improvement projects, refinery turnaround planning, crude selection and supply logistics, operational constraint management, refinery planning, feedstock evaluation, linear programming applications, commercial trading support, and long-term refinery strategy. As a Senior Economist, he managed refinery LP model fidelity and contributed to the development of economic training frameworks.

At Baker & O’Brien, Nishal focuses on refinery economics, optimization, feedstock evaluation, and technical-commercial analyses across the refining and petrochemical sectors. He brings expertise in LP modeling, economic analysis, and strategic planning while integrating operational, economic, and commercial perspectives to advise clients on complex technical, commercial, and strategic engagements.

Previous Experience

2019-2026: ExxonMobil,
Senior Economist
Economist
Crude Coordinator
Process Engineer

2016-2019: Cooper Tire and Rubber Company,
Process Engineer