Chinese government has approved state-run the China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (Sinopec Group) plan to build a 400,000 barrel-per-day Yanbu refinery, three months after Sinopec and state-run Saudi Aramco struck an initial pact to build the $10 billion plant in the world's top oil exporting country. The National Development & Reform Commission, the country's economic planner, announced the approval in a brief note published on its website (www.ndrc.gov.cn), it was revealed Fiday. China, the world's No.2 oil consumer, is surpassing the US as Kingdom's largest crude oil buyer with volumes set to hit an average of 1 million bpd this year, or about one-fifth of China's crude imports. Aramco said in March it would hold a 62.5-percent stake in the Red Sea Refining Co. formed to build the Yanbu refinery, while Sinopec would own the remainder. “This opens a new page of investment for Sinopec in Saudi's refining and petrochemical sector, enhancing a strategic relationship that complements each other's strength,” Su Shulin, chairman of Sinopec Group was quoted as saying in a statement. “The project will boost Sinopec's global competitive edge and expand the firm's supply channel for international resources.” Sinopec Group is parent of Sinopec Corp., Asia's largest refiner. This would be Sinopec's first refining venture outside China, putting it in a race against rival PetroChina, which has clinched a string of refinery deals beyond Chinese borders. China raised it crude oil imports from Saudi Arabia tons by 19 percent in the first half of the year at 24.17 million, or about 975,000 bpd.
