Zhejiang to benefit from massive investment
Two of China's energy giants are set to invest heavily in East Zhejiang province.
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Wenzhou is set to benefit from major oil investment Image: Livepine |
PetroChina Co Ltd and Sinopec have agreed to invest $22 billion (139.1bn yuan) in six projects in eastern Zhejiang province. The projects will include two major refinery-petrochemical complexes, as well as an integrated plant in Zhenhai and a new liquified natural gas (LNG) refinery in Wenzhou.
Although the various activities will be guaranteed funding, some, like PetroChina's Taizhou refinery, have yet to receive environmental clearance from the National Development and Reform Commission.
The 400,000 barrel-per-day and 1.2 million ton-per-year refinery will cost approximately $12.6 billion and will also involve major global players Royal Dutch Shell Plc and Qatar Petroleum. However, gaining approvals from the necessary governing bodies can often slow project development down and, in some cases, impede progress for an indeterminate period of time.
Amongst the various plans for new refineries, LNG and ethylene plants is an agreement from Sinopec to develop a 7,373km gas pipeline between Zhejiang and the troubled western province of Xinjiang. Once completed, Sinopec expects the pipeline to have a 30 billion cubic metres-per-year capacity.
