The National Development and Reform Commission has granted preliminary approval to a joint venture refinery and petrochemical complex between China Petroleum & Chemical Corp., known as Sinopec, and Kuwait Petroleum Corp. in southern China’s Guangdong province. The joint project has been planned for five years and was previously suspended due to environmental concerns. The proposed site has since been relocated from the densely populated Nansha district to the much-less-densely populated Zhanjiang city. Total investment for the complex is estimated at USD 8.8 billion. The two companies must submit the results of a feasibility study and an environmental impact assessment to the NDRC, China’s top economic planning agency, before they can obtain final approval. State-run KPC and Sinopec Corp. plan to start operations at the complex in 2013, with crude throughput capacity of 300,000bpd and ethylene output capacity of 1 million tons a year. Kuwait will supply all the crude oil for the project.
