Energy

China top refiners crude runs seen flat in Aug vs July

(Agencies)
Updated: 2010-08-06 15:56

China's leading refineries are expected to process the same volume of crude oil in August as they did a month earlier, as planned increases in runs in some plants would be offset by cuts in others.

Twelve major refineries, accounting for more than a third of China's capacity, plan to process 2.86 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil, a Reuters poll showed.

The August volume would represent 90 percent of their total capacity. PetroChina's Jinzhou refinery will raise August runs by more than 40 percent after maintenance, while Sinopec's Gaoqiao plant will increase throughput by 13 percent following the steady kickoff of a new crude unit.

Related readings:  CNPC sees China oil output up 1-2% in 2010  1st phase of oil reserve project completed  PetroChina Dalian refinery runs at normal rate  Venezuela pares China debt with $20b oil accord

But PetroChina will cut runs at its Lanzhou plant by about 10 percent from July due to an unplanned repair, while CNOOC's Huizhou also plans to lower its output moderately due to a refill of catalyst.

Throughput in PetroChina's Dalian refinery is expected to be largely flat from July and operations at its export-oriented Dalian West Pacific Petrochemical Co (WEPEC) will likely slow down a bit this month even as refinery officials said that operation plans weren't final.

A pipeline blast on July 16 in Dalian Port disrupted the offloading of crude and fuel exports, hitting operations at Dalian and WEPEC, adjacent to the port. Port activity has subsequently resumed, though it could take time before everything gets back to normal.