PetroChina Co Ltd, a subsidiary of China National Petroleum Corp, on Monday put a RMB 30-billion refining and petrochemical project in Dushanzi, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region into operation, sources reported.

The project consists of ten refining machines, 11 chemical units and other supporting facilities. The complex is capable of processing 10 million tons of crude oil by distillation and 2 million tons of crude oil by hydrocracking a year. In addition, the project has annual output of 1 million tons of ethylene, 900,000 tons of polyethylene and 550,000 tons of polypropylene.

PetroChina started construction on the project in August 2005 and originally expected to put it into operation in October 2007. The project was delayed several times due to late equipment deliveries and severe winter weather in the Gobi Desert region, which covers parts of northern China and southern Mongolia.

According to CNPC's official website, the large project will principally process high-sulfur crude oil delivered from Kazakhstan via a new pipeline, which currently has an annual transmission capacity of 10 million tons but will eventually be able to carry 20 million tons per year.

Reportedly, CNPC recently purchased 243 million shares or a 0.13% stake in PetroChina, which brought its shareholding to 158.17 billion shares or 86.42% of PetroChina's total capital.

Source: www.chinaknowledge.com