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Dalian revives plan to relocate PetroChina refinery

  • : Crude oil, Oil products
  • 21/10/21

China's Dalian municipal government is reviving a plan to relocate state-controlled PetroChina's biggest plant, the 410,000 b/d Dalian Petrochemical refinery, away from Dalian city in northeast Liaoning province. But the long-mooted plan faces financial and potential regulatory hurdles and may increase petrochemical competition in the region.

Dalian has one of the highest refining capacity among Chinese cities and is where PetroChina's 200,000 b/d Wepec refinery is also located. The local government has long considered this to be a safety hazard as the city becomes more built-up and has been pushing for Dalian Petrochemical to relocate since 2009. The refinery itself has been plagued by poor safety records over the years.

The local government is proposing for the plant to be relocated to the nearby Xizhong island, one of a group of islands located at the tip of the Liaodong Peninsula in the Bohai sea. The Dalian Changxing Island Economic and Technological Development Zone, which includes the Changxing, Xizhong, Fengming, Jiaoliu and Luotuo islands, is floating the idea of developing the area into a mega integrated refining and petrochemical base. Changxing island, which includes Xizhong and is already home to private-sector Hengli Petrochemical's 400,000 b/d refinery, belongs to one of seven industrial bases approved by Beijing to develop refining projects.

As part of the relocation plan for Dalian Petrochemical, the local government is prepared to grant PetroChina land rights to build a 400,000 b/d refinery in two phases, which is to be integrated with up to 2.4mn t/yr of steam cracking capacity in two phases, as well as other units on Xizhong island. It hopes that PetroChina will start construction as soon as next year and complete the project by 2024.

The oil giant, which has balked at the plan because of its potential high costs, has not confirmed a timeline or scale for the project. But it started drafting a pre-feasibility study recently, indicating that the plan is likely to move ahead, a company source said.

PetroChina wants to expand its petrochemical exposure and relocating to a bigger area may give it the flexibility to install more units and achieve higher downstream integration. The new plant is likely to have a lower oil product yield than less-integrated refineries. But cost is a major hurdle. The local government has not said if it will subsidise the project, something PetroChina is still lobbying for.

PetroChina's refining and chemical budget of 38bn yuan ($5.9bn) this year, up by 74pc from 2020, includes construction of its only greenfield 400,000 b/d Jieyang refinery in Guangdong province, which is expected to come on stream next year.

But new refining projects are facing more scrutiny from the ecology and environment ministry, which has stepped up checks this year. These have revealed pollution violations by the oil sector, including refineries, prompting the ministry to issue warnings and fines.

Beijing has also tightened scrutiny on energy intensity this year. Under the country's goal of achieving peak carbon emissions before 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060, Beijing has vowed to clamp down on high-energy intensity and high-emission projects with a so-called dual-control strategy to curb energy consumption and intensity, which has partly contributed to widespread power supply shortages since last month.

The Guangdong branch of China's National Energy Administration revoked energy intensity approvals for state-controlled energy firm Sinopec earlier this year to add secondary units and petrochemical capacity at its Maoming, Guangdong refinery because of energy intensity concerns. The 470,000 b/d Maoming refinery had applied to build new units such as a 3mn t/yr catalytic cracker and alkylation and MTBE units, as well as expand a 1mn t/yr steam cracker to 1.64mn t/yr.

Some major refinery projects, including those under construction, may now have to redo their energy intensity reports because of the government's dual-control energy policy, according to an official from a government-linked industry association.


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24/12/13

Syria faces fuel supply conundrum

Syria faces fuel supply conundrum

London, 13 December (Argus) — The overthrow of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad has left the country's trading relationship with Iran on an uncertain footing, putting pressure on the new transitional government to upgrade refining infrastructure and find alternative sources of fuel supply. As the Assad regime's closest ally, Iran has been Syria's main source of both crude and oil product imports since western sanctions were imposed on Damascas in the early stages of its civil war in 2011. The product shipments are difficult to track as they are carried out by Iran's 'dark fleet', but consultancy FGE estimates Iran has been sending around 10,000-20,000 b/d to Syria in recent years. Those trade flows are no longer guaranteed, given that Hayat Tahir al-Sham (HTS), the main militant group behind the armed revolt to topple Assad, has close ties to Iran's regional rival Turkey. Syria is now likely to import oil products from other local sources, a trading analyst told Argus . Turkey itself is an option, although one Turkish trader ruled out any immediate business plans to supply Syria. Watad, HTS' affiliated oil trading arm, has previously imported oil and gas from Turkey and has marketed gasoline thought to have come from Ukraine via Turkey, according to a regional analyst. Egypt is another possible supplier. It has enough capacity to export refined products to Syria for the time being, according to a refining source in the country. Vortexa data show gasoil was last loaded from Egypt's Sidi Kerir terminal in July. Syria's transitional government may also attempt to increase domestic supply, although that will require rehabilitating the country's 140,000 b/d Banias and 110,000 b/d Homs refineries. Run rates have halved since 2011, the IEA estimates. Only the Banias refinery is operating at a reasonable level, according to sources. Iran earlier this year proposed a €140mn revamp of the Homs refinery, which has been operating below capacity for years because of infrastructure damage incurred during the civil war . Syrian demand for oil products has seen a structural decline since the civil war, with consumption dropping by around 60pc between 2011 and 2022, according to the IEA. But with Assad's overthrow signalling a potential return of refugees from neighbouring Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan, demand may pick up in the coming months, intensifying pressure on the transitional administration to seek new trade flows and repair the country's refining infrastructure. By George Maher-Bonnett Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Canada sets 2035 emissions reduction goal


24/12/13
24/12/13

Canada sets 2035 emissions reduction goal

London, 13 December (Argus) — Canada has set a new 2035 climate goal, aiming to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 45-50pc by 2035, from a 2005 baseline. This builds on its 2030 target of a 40-45pc emissions reduction, again from 2005 levels. Canada's emissions had been in 2015 projected to rise by 9pc by 2030, from 2005 levels, "but we are now successfully bending the curve", the Canadian environment and climate change ministry said. The newly-announced target is in line with a pledge Canada made at the UN Cop 29 climate summit last month. Countries that are party to the Paris climate accord must submit new national climate plans by 10 February 2025, to cover a timeframe up to 2035. Canada, the EU, Mexico, Norway and Switzerland committed at Cop 29 to set out new plans with "steep emissions cuts" that are consistent with the global 1.5°C temperature increase limit sought by the Paris Agreement. The plans are known as nationally determined contributions (NDCs). Canada's NDC is being considered by the cabinet, and the country plans to submit it by the deadline, Canadian climate change ambassador Catherine Stewart told Cop 29 delegates on 21 November. Tackling climate change is "both an environmental imperative and an economic opportunity", she added. The target was informed "by the best available science, Indigenous Knowledge, international climate change commitments, consultations with provinces and territories and expert advice", the ministry said. Canada will also "seek feedback on how to help companies take advantage of the economic opportunities that come with building a clean economy" in the near term, it added. Although the plan is not yet available, the ministry said that it will examine the role of carbon removal technologies for the energy transition. "Canadians are increasingly experiencing record-breaking extreme weather," the ministry noted. The country experienced record wildfires in 2023. Carbon emissions from wildfires this year were second only to the "unprecedented" levels in 2023, EU earth-monitoring service Copernicus found this month. Canada has a legally binding target of net zero emissions by 2050. By Georgia Gratton Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Tarmac to receive bitumen at UK Dagenham terminal


24/12/13
24/12/13

Tarmac to receive bitumen at UK Dagenham terminal

London, 13 December (Argus) — Tarmac, one of the UK's leading road and general construction firms, will start receiving bitumen cargoes at the 20,000t capacity Dagenham bitumen terminal in southeast England in late January, market participants told Argus . The terminal, operated by trading firm Trafigura's Puma Energy unit since 2015 , is part of an oil storage facility run by Stolthaven Terminals, a subsidiary of Norwegian company Stolt-Nielsen. Puma Energy regularly imports bitumen cargoes into Dagenham from a variety of sources including its own Cadiz bitumen terminal in Spain. Some 211,000t has been imported into Dagenham this year, roughly double 2023 volumes, according to data from trade analytics firm Vortexa. The sharp rise follows Puma Energy's decision to halt operations at its bitumen barge terminal in Newport, Wales early this year. Market participants said at the time that they expected Puma Energy to increase imports into Dagenham for inward truck supply to domestic UK customers to help compensate for the Newport halt. Trafigura and Tarmac have declined to comment on the latter's bitumen purchase plans at Dagenham. It is not clear whether Trafigura will exclusively supply the volumes into the terminal for Tarmac. The constructor is understood to have struck its annual term deals for all its UK bitumen purchases for 2025, but the identity of the suppliers has not been disclosed. by Fenella Rhodes and Keyvan Hedvat Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

NordBit to exit Dunkirk bitumen terminal at year-end


24/12/12
24/12/12

NordBit to exit Dunkirk bitumen terminal at year-end

London, 12 December (Argus) — Hamburg-based bitumen supply and trading firm NordBit will end its operations at the Dunkirk bitumen terminal in northeast France at the end of this year, a source familiar with the firm's operations said. NordBit — a bitumen joint venture between German firms Mabanol and H&R — has been operating the 11,000-12,000t capacity terminal since 2019 . The bitumen facility is part of a wider oil products and chemicals complex at Dunkirk. According to vessel tracking data, the bitumen terminal at Dunkirk has received 25,900t this year, although no cargoes have been discharged since August. Market participants said the terminal is in need of upgrading and will probably need the work done ahead of renting. The imminent halt to NordBit's operations at Dunkirk comes as French building conglomerate Vinci's Eurovia subsidiary nears completion of its own new and separate 16,000t capacity bitumen terminal in Dunkirk which is scheduled to start operating from March or April next year. By Fenella Rhodes Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Opec+ decision reduces potential supply surplus: IEA


24/12/12
24/12/12

Opec+ decision reduces potential supply surplus: IEA

London, 12 December (Argus) — The recent decision by Opec+ members to delay a planned output increase has "materially reduced" a potential supply surplus next year, the IEA said today. Opec+ producers earlier this month pushed back a plan to start unwinding 2.2mn b/d of voluntary crude production cuts by three months to April 2025 and to return the full amount over 18 months rather than a year. Still, the oil market in 2025 is still likely to be significantly oversupplied, the IEA said in its Oil Market Report (OMR), given persistent overproduction by some Opec+ members, strong supply growth from outside the alliance and modest global oil demand growth. The Paris-based agency's base case forecasts show supply exceeding demand by 950,000 b/d next year, even if all Opec+ cuts remain in place. The supply surplus would increase to 1.4mn b/d if alliance members start increasing output from April as planned, the IEA said. This is far from guaranteed. Opec+ has already delayed its plan to increase output three times and continues to say a decision to unwind will depend on market conditions. While the IEA expects oil demand growth to remain subdued next year, its latest forecasts show a slightly higher outlook than in its previous report . The agency revised up its oil demand growth forecast for 2025 by 90,000 b/d to 1.1mn b/d, largely because of China's recently announced economic stimulus measures. This would see global consumption rise to 103.9mn b/d. But the IEA downgraded its oil demand growth forecast for this year by 80,000 b/d, to 840,000 b/d, mostly because of "weaker-than-expected non-OECD deliveries in countries such as China, Saudi Arabia and Indonesia." It said non-OECD oil demand growth in the third quarter, at 320,000 b/d, was the lowest since the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. The IEA said lacklustre demand growth this year and next reflects "a generally sub-par macroeconomic environment and changing patterns of oil use." Increases will be driven by petrochemical feedstocks, and demand for transport fuels "will continue to be constrained by behavioural and technological progress." On supply, the IEA downgraded its growth estimates for 2025 by 110,000 b/d to 1.9mn b/d. Most of this will come from non-Opec+ countries such as the US, Canada, Guyana, Brazil and Argentina. The agency nudged lower its supply forecasts for this year, by 10,000 b/d to 630,000 b/d. The IEA said global observed oil stocks declined by 39.3mn bl in October, led by an "exceptionally sharp" fall in oil product inventories due to low refinery activity coupled with higher demand. It said preliminary data show a rebound in global inventories in November. By Aydin Calik Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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