China's CNOOC signs contract for oil development in Iraq's Block 7
CNOOC Ltd, a Chinese company, announced Wednesday that it had signed an Exploration, Development & Production Contract with Iraq's State-run Midland Oil Company for the exploration of oil and gas in the Block 7 Field. CNOOC Africa Holding Ltd, the state oil and gas company's fully owned unit, will hold 100% interests and act as the operator for the 6,300-square-kilometer Block 7, located in central Iraq's Diwaniyah province. CNOOC won the bid to explore the block as part of Iraq's licensing round…
China's refinery output in September fell for the sixth consecutive month
China's refinery production fell 5.4% in January compared to a year ago, according to official data released on Friday. This is the sixth consecutive month of declines, despite the opening of a brand new plant, as low fuel consumption and thin refining margins slowed processing. The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), according to its data, showed that refiners processed 58.73 millions metric tons of crude last month. This is equivalent to 14,29 million barrels of oil per day. As some refineries began to operate again after planned maintenance and a new refinery was opened in Shandong…
Sinopec reports east China's shale field pumps 1,600 tons of oil per day
Sinopec, the state oil group, announced on Wednesday that it is progressing with the development of shale oils at its Jiyang pilot project in east China. The company now pumps 1,600 tons per day, up from just 100 tons in 2020. Sinopec, at this rate, is on course to meet a 2022 target of producing 500,000 tons per year by 2025 in Jiyang. Jiyang is located mainly in Shandong Province and covers 7,300 square kilometers (1.8 million acres). China's oil companies have increased their efforts to extract shale deposits that are difficult to access to compensate for the rapidly depleting older conventional oilfields.
Sources say that Sinochem, a Chinese company, plans to withdraw from its US shale joint venture with Exxon.
Sinochem, a Chinese state-backed oil company, plans to sell its 40% stake, worth upwards of $ 2 billion, in a U.S. joint venture with Exxon Mobil, according to people familiar with the situation. Sources claim that Sinochem hired Barclays investment bankers to help it with the sale of its Wolfcamp joint-venture stake. Source: Exxon has the first right of refusal to sell the joint venture, which is majority owned and operated by the company. Sources cautioned, however, that the sale discussions are still in their early stages and a deal is not guaranteed with Exxon, or any other interested parties.
CNOOC China says fossil fuels are crucial for the near future
CNOOC Ltd, a Chinese offshore oil and natural gas company, believes that fossil fuels will continue to be a stabilising force in the global energy market for a long time. The company has set a record production target for 2024. CNOOC, after reporting a record-breaking interim profit, said that the state-run firm aimed to pump 700 to 720 millions barrels of oil by 2024 or 3% to 6 percent more than last year. CNOOC's Chief Executive Zhou Xinhuai said that the company expects its domestic gas production to grow strongly through 2030. It is also ready to monetize Guyana's vast gas reserves.
PetroChina posts record interim profit, but fuel sales decline
PetroChina, China's largest gas and oil company, announced on Monday that its first-half net profit had reached a new record, an increase of 3.9% over a year earlier, due to higher gas and oil prices, which outweighed lower refining profits. According to a filing at the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, the net income for the period was 88.61 billion Yuan ($12.44billion) and the total revenue increased by 5% to 1.554 trillion Yuan. Sinopec, China's largest refiner, reported a 2.6% increase in its net interim profit to $5.2 billion.
Jiaao, a biofuel company in China, has brought BP on board as an investor for its SAF unit
Zhejiang Jiaao Enprotech, a Chinese biofuel company, announced on Friday that its sustainable aviation (SAF), unit had entered into an investment agreement with BP. This is the first time a global oil giant has invested in China's green aviation fuel. BP will invest 354 million yuan (49.56 millions) in Lianyungang Jiaao Enproenergy Co., which is building a 500,000 tons per year SAF facility in the eastern coast city of Lianyungang. Jiaao was one of the first investors in China to invest more than $1 billion in turning waste cooking oil…
Iranian Oil Exports End 2022 at a High, Despite No Nuclear Deal
Iranian oil exports hit new highs in the last two months of 2022 and are making a strong start to 2023 despite U.S. sanctions, according to companies that track the flows, on higher shipments to China and Venezuela.Tehran's oil exports have been limited since former U.S. President Donald Trump in 2018 exited a 2015 nuclear accord and reimposed sanctions aimed at curbing oil exports and the associated revenue to Iran's government.Exports have risen during the term of his successor President Joe Biden, who had sought to revive the nuclear deal, and hit the highest since 2019 on some estimates.
Asian Countries Looking to Release Oil Reserves after U.S. Request
The world's biggest economies said on Thursday they were looking into releasing oil from their strategic reserves, following a rare request from the United States for a coordinated move to cool global energy prices.The U.S. move reflects frustration with the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies such as Russia who have rebuffed Washington's requests to speed up oil production as the world economy rebounds from the pandemic.It also comes as U.S. President Joe Biden…
Mercuria Teams Up with Envysion for Project Investment
Trading house Mercuria and Singapore-based asset manager Envysion Wealth Management have agreed to co-invest in mining and energy projects, as default-hit banks tighten their purse strings and leave commodities firms seeking other funding.The deal, signed on Wednesday, will see Mercuria present potential projects for investment to Envysion, founded and led by former Julius Baer banker Veronica Shim. Envysion will then decide whether to participate via a fund with a start-up amount of $100 million…
China's INE Considers Singapore for Marine Fuel Futures Delivery
The Shanghai International Energy Exchange (INE) is considering using oil storage sites in Singapore owned by PetroChina Co as a delivery point for its low-sulphur fuel oil futures contract, according to two sources with direct knowledge of the matter.The INE’s move would be the first time a Chinese futures contract would be deliverable outside of China and could boost liquidity for the contract, as well as help to influence pricing for shipping fuel.Low-sulphur fuel oil (LSFO) is required as ship fuel to meet new maritime emissions regulations that went into effect this year.
China Ramps up US Oil Purchases Ahead of Trade Deal Review
U.S. crude oil shipments to China will rise sharply in coming weeks, U.S. traders and shipbrokers and Chinese importers said, as the world’s top economies gear up to review a January deal after a prolonged trade war.Chinese state-owned oil firms have tentatively booked tankers to carry at least 20 million barrels of U.S. crude for August and September, the people said, moves that may ease U.S. concerns that China’s purchases are trending well short of purchase commitments under the Phase 1 of the trade deal.China had emerged as a top U.S.
China Starts Construction of Southern Part of China-Russia East Gas Pipeline
Construction has started on the southern portion of the China-Russia East natural gas pipeline, which carries supplies from the Power of Siberia system in Russia, China Oil & Gas Piping Network Corp (PipeChina) in a statement on Tuesday.This portion starts at Yongqing in China's northern province of Hebei and ends at Shanghai in eastern China. The full China-Russia East system is a 5,111-km (3,176-mile) pipeline pumping natural gas from the Siberia region in Russia to China.Once launched in 2025…
China Grants Zheijang First Private Fuel Export License
China has granted Zhejiang Petroleum & Chemical Co (ZPC) a license to export refined oil products, making it the first private oil refiner to win such permission, two sources with knowledge of the matter said on Thursday.The license would allow ZPC to directly sell oil products to the international market, competing against state-owned refiners and helping to ease oversupply pressure in China's domestic market.However, the refiner will still need to be granted a government quota that will determine the size of its exports before it can begin shipments…
China's Sinopec Starts Hiring for New Risk Management Unit
China Petrochemical Corp, or Sinopec Group, has started hiring for six top management positions for a new commodities risk management unit, according to a statement posted on the state energy company's official wechat account on Sunday.Formally known as Sinopec Chaoyang Risk Management Co and with a registered capital of 300 million yuan ($42.40 million), the new firm will provide financial services for the oil and chemical sector including hedging and inventory management, Sinopec said.The new…
China's Saudi Oil Imports Surge to All-time High
China's crude oil imports from Saudi Arabia nearly doubled in May from a year earlier to all-time high as refineries snapped up cheap fuel, while the kingdom retained its position as the top supplier to the world's biggest oil buyer.Arrivals from Saudi last month reached 9.165 million tonnes, or 2.16 million barrels per day (bpd), up about 95% from 1.11 million bpd in May 2019 and up 71% from 1.26 million bpd in April, data from the General Administration of Customs showed.Chinese refineries have cranked up throughput to meet a recovery in fuel demand…
Sinopec Starts Up $6B Zhanjiang Refinery Complex
Top Chinese state refiner Sinopec Corp said on Tuesday it had started up a $6 billion new refinery and petrochemical plant in south China, making it the country's third integrated complex to start operations in the past 18 months or so.The Sinopec venture, situated in coastal city of Zhanjiang, comprises a 200,000 barrel per day (bpd) crude oil refinery and an 800,000 tonne-per-year ethylene facility, built at a cost of 44 billion yuan ($6.2 billion), Sinopec said in a statement.Two other complexes with combined refining capacity of 800,000 bpd have started up since early 2019, one built by privately-controlled H
Refineries around Asia Join Chinese Peers in Increasing Production
Refineries from India to South Korea are expected to increase output from June, joining their Chinese counterparts as the easing of lockdown measures boosts demand for oil products, industry executives said.The average operating rate for refineries in Asia is expected to rise to 75.5% and 82.2% in the third and fourth quarters, respectively, from 72.4% in the second quarter out of total capacity of about 35 million barrels per day, according to energy consultancy FGE.Refineries in countries such as India…
Sinopec Adds More Oil Storage at Baishawan
China's Sinopec has started operating the second phase of its Baishawan commercial crude oil storage project in eastern province Zhejiang, the company said in a statement on Wednesday.The project had added four storage tanks with combined capacity of 450,000 cubic metres to its existing 950,000 cubic metres storage capacity, which was put in use in 2009.Baishawan commercial crude storage base is managed and operated by Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical Co, a subsidiary of the state-backed energy giant.(Reporting by Muyu Xu and Chen Aizhu; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)
China Approves $20B Mega Petchem Complex
China's state planner has given initial approval for a $20 billion refinery and petrochemical project to be built in Shandong province, the country's hub for independent oil refineries, said two persons with knowledge of the matter.China's National Development & Reform Commission (NDRC) gave a green light on Monday for the Shandong provincial government to start planning a 400,000 barrel-per-day (bpd) refinery and 3 million tonne-per-year ethylene plant in Yantai, said the two China-based industry sources.The project in the eastern Chinese province was first proposed several years ago…
