Sinochem and Kuwait work on refinery deal

Beijing: Chinese state oil trader Sinochem has signed a framework deal with Kuwait to supply crude oil to its planned 240,000-barrel-per-day refinery on China's southeast coast, company sources said yesterday.

Sinochem President Liu Deshu said on the sidelines of China's annual parliament meeting that his firm had reached a deal with the Middle East producer for crude supply, without giving details.

"We have such a deal with Kuwait," said Liu when asked if Sinochem has eyed any Middle Eastern crude suppliers for its new refinery in the city of Quanzhou.

Company sources told Reuters that the pact, inked late last year, covers supply for the 240,000 bpd refinery, the trader's first wholly owned downstream investment in China.

Asian expansion

Kuwait has set ambitious Asian expansion plans, hoping to finalise deals by next year to build new refineries and petrochemical plants in China, Vietnam and India, chief executive of state-run Kuwait Petroleum Corp, Sa'ad Al Shuwaib, said on Tuesday.

KPC is working with China's top refiner Sinopec to build a 300,000 bpd-350,000 bpd refinery in south China, a mega investment that's pending Beijing's final greenlight.