The China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) received the 1st-ever cargo of Arabian crude oil at its flagship Huizhou refinery in South China’s Guangdong Province, Saudi Aramco reported on August 30, 2017.
The original 240,000 barrel per day (bpd) refinery has recently completed a 200,000 bpd expansion that is configured to process sour Arab Gulf grades, and Aramco’s Arab Medium crude oil is a preferred choice for the plant’s baseload.
CNOOC is the last of China’s 3 large national oil companies to join Saudi Aramco’s customer family.
Prior to its expansion, Huizhou had no need for imported sour crudes since it mostly processed domestic oil from CNOOC’s own offshore fields.
Entrusted by the government to be the sole developer of China’s offshore upstream, CNOOC in 2016 produced about 1.1 million bpd of crude oil, as well as 1.3 billion cubic feet per day of natural gas, and its total refining capacity stood at 1.2 million bpd.
The vessel’s arrival at the Huizhou terminal was celebrated by an Aramco Asia delegation together with representatives from CNOOC upper management.
Nabil A. Al-Nuaim, CEO of Saudi Aramco Asia, welcomed the news of CNOOC’s 1st Arabian crude oil arrival, noting: «The new crude sales agreement with CNOOC highlights that China is at the front and center of our downstream strategy and that we continue to be China’s most reliable supplier. Aramco Asia will continue to support Chinese and other Asian refiners to have access to reliable Saudi crude.»
