Aramco and joint venture partners NORINCO Group and Panjin Xincheng Industrial Group plan to start construction of a major integrated refinery and petrochemical complex in northeast China, Aramco announced today.
Huajin Aramco Petrochemical Co (HAPCO), which is a joint venture between Aramco (30%), NORINCO Group (51%) and Panjin Xincheng Industrial Group (19%), is developing the complex that will combine a 300,000 barrels per day refinery and a petrochemical plant with annual production capacity of 1.65 million metric tons of ethylene and 2 million metric tons of paraxylene.
Construction is due to start in the second quarter of 2023 after the project secured the required administrative approvals. It is expected to be fully operational by 2026.
Aramco will supply up to 210,000 bpd of crude oil feedstock to the complex, which is being built in the city of Panjin, in China’s Liaoning province.
Mohammed Y. Al Qahtani, Aramco’s executive vice president of downstream, said: “This important project will support China’s growing demand across fuel and chemical products. It also represents a major milestone in our ongoing downstream expansion strategy in China and the wider region, which is an increasingly significant driver of global petrochemical demand. “
