REUTERS UPDATE 3-China coastal refiners run near peaks, risk losses [FKNGCRW]
(Adds Zhenhai refinery's rates)
SINGAPORE, Sept 1 (Reuters) - Several major Chinese coastal
oil refiners will operate near peak levels this month to
replenish thin stockpiles, despite loss-making domestic
margins, Chinese industry officials said on Thursday.
Four major refiners -- including China's biggest -- will
keep runs steady and one will boost throughput, bowing to
Beijing's demands to ease shortages in southern China despite
expectations they might try to cut runs after losing key tax
breaks on exported fuels such as gasoline and naphtha.
Zhenhai Refining & Chemical Co. Ltd. <1128.HK> will operate
flat out at 360,000 barrels per day (bpd) in September. China's
largest refinery has a primary crude processing capacity of
411,000 bpd but cannot run at that level due to insufficient
secondary units.
Two big refiners will reduce throughput due to regular
maintenance, offsetting some of the output gains.
The steady runs should indicate more healthy supply to the
domestic market, which has been tight this summer as refiners
diverted more of their output to the international market to
counteract losses on domestic sales.
"Sinopec <SNP.N> <0386.HK> has mandated its refineries to
maximise gasoline production because supplies are critically
low. They fail to match peak summer demand," another Chinese
official said.
The 154,000-bpd Guangzhou plant is increasing run rates in
September by 12 percent to 146,000 bpd after having cut back
the previous month due to costly crude imports.
Qilu refinery is keeping September runs steady at 214,000
bpd, above its nameplate capacity of 210,000 bpd.
And the 270,000-bpd Jinling plant will raise crude runs by
9 percent to 226,000 bpd, as it will restart a 100,000-bpd
crude unit by September, following closure on Aug. 18 for a
scheduled maintenance.
PetroChina <PRT.N><0857.HK>-owned Jinzhou plant is raising
runs by 8 percent to 122,000 bpd, while Lanzhou and WEPEC
refineries will keep rates steady at under 190,000 bpd each.
MAINTENANCE
But Maoming Petrochemical Corp. is cutting crude runs this
month by 12 percent from August levels to 231,000 bpd, due to
maintenance works at its 50,000-bpd crude distillation and
28,000-bpd gasoline-making units.
The shutdown, which started on Sept. 1, will last 20-25
days, Chinese officials said.
The refinery, which supplies oil products to southern
Guangdong and to the landlocked southwest, has three other
crude units. The biggest unit, No. 4, has a 100,000-bpd
capacity, while No.1 and No. 2 are 60,000-bpd each.
"Domestic fuel supplies are tight but the units have to
undergo maintenance before they face technical problems," a
Chinese official said.
PetroChina's Jinxi refinery will reduce runs by 40 percent
to 73,000 bpd due to a planned crude unit shutdown, while
Dalian refinery will resume normal operations at 190,000 bpd
following maintenance.
China has been beset by a fuel supply crunch, following
months-long, excessive exports of gasoline and diesel, in the
face of depressed domestic prices and expensive crude imports.
Guangdong, the manufacturing heartland, was hardest hit,
where the scene was once marred by snake-long queues at pump
stations and widespread fuel rationing.
(Additional reporting by Judy Hua and Emma Graham-Harrison in
Beijing)
( |
