CNPC JV refinery receives go-ahead from State Council
Shanghai. April 16. INTERFAX-CHINA - A proposed joint venture (JV) oil refinery between oil and gas major China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC) and state-owned Venezuelan oil company Petroleos de Venezuela, S.A. (PDVSA) has received approval from the State Council, China's Cabinet, state media reported on April 15.
According to the official Xinhua news agency report, CNPC and PDVSA will invest a combined RMB 58.5 billion ($9.29 billion) to build the refinery in south China's Huizhou City, Guangdong Province. Upon completion, the project will be able to process approximately 20 million tons of crude oil annually. The report did not disclose a construction timetable or details regarding the investment structure.
CNPC will hold a 60 percent stake in the project, while PDVSA will retain the remaining 40 percent, said the report, noting that the refinery will eventually reach 50 million tons of annual processing capacity.
The majority of CNPC's refineries are located in west and northeast China, industry expert Han Qiang told Interfax today. The proposed JV will strengthen the company's south China's oil products market.
To feed its growing appetite for oil products, China is expected to boost its crude oil refining capacity by 190 million tons during the 12th Five-Year Plan period (2011-2015), ultimately reaching 650 million tons by 2015, China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation forecast last November.
China's two largest oil companies, CNPC and China Petrochemical Corp. (Sinopec Group), currently dominate more than 80 percent of the nation's crude oil refining capacity.
China's largest crude oil refineries
| Rank | Name | Owner | Annual refining capacity (mln tons) |
| 1 | Zhenhai Refinery | Sinopec | 23.00 |
| 2 | Dalian Refinery | CNPC | 20.50 |
| 3 | Shanghai Petrochemical Refinery | Sinopec | 14.00 |
| 4 | Maoming Refinery | Sinopec | 13.50 |
| 5 | Guangzhou Refinery | Sinopec | 13.20 |
| 6 | Jilin Refinery | Sinopec | 13.00 |
| 7 | Tianjin Refinery | Sinopec | 12.50 |
| 8 | Shanghai Gaoqiao | Sinopec | 12.50 |
| 9 | Fujian Refinery | Sinopec | 12.00 |
| 10 | Huizhou Refinery | CNOOC | 12.00 |
| 11 | Lanzhou Refinery | CNPC | 10.50 |
| 12 | Lanzhou Refinery | Sinopec | 10.50 |
| 13 | Dushanzi Refinery | CNPC | 10.00 |
| 14 | Jilin Petrochemical Refinery | CNPC | 10.00 |
| 15 | Yanshan Refinery | Sinopec | 10.00 |
| 16 | Qilu Refinery | Sinopec | 10.00 |
| 17 | Qingdao Refinery | Sinopec | 10.00 |
| 18 | Guangxi Petrochemical Refinery | CNPC | 10.00 |
| 19 | Dalian West Pacific Refinery | Dalian Pacific Oil | 10.00 |
| 20 | Yangzi Petrochemical Refinery | Sinopec | 9.50 |
Source: NDRC, NEA, Xinhua
-WV