ANALYSIS – China set for 400,000-bpd oil refinery output rise

BEIJING, Jan 9 (Reuters) – China’s top oil refineries and major new plants will supply an additional 400,000 barrels per day (bpd) of fuel to the world’s second-biggest consumer this year, more than double last year’s rise, a Reuters survey found.

While that growth is nearly equal to the forecast increase in demand, China may be forced to continue importing extra supplies right up until the Olympics this summer as several key facilities will be commissioned only in the latter half of the year.


China has taken a measured approach to expanding its refining sector, pushing its big state oil firms such as Sinopec to build enough new plants to meet fast-growing domestic demand while cautioning against excessive expansion — in contrast to the surge in export-oriented investment in India and the Gulf.

The risks of that policy showed last autumn, when regional fuel shortages spread as far as the capital city, causing China’s worst supply crisis in four years as the dozens of semi-official “teapot” refineries shut down due to soaring feedstock costs.

Reuters