CNOOC to Snare Zhoushan Hebon Chemical        

CNOOC Ningbo Daxie Petrochemical Co., Ltd. is in talks to acquire a 100% stake in Zhejiang province-based Zhoushan Hebon Chemical Co., Ltd. to strengthen its refining and chemical business, CCR has learned.
   CNOOC Ningbo Daxie is a joint venture co-invested by China Offshore Oil & Gas Development & Utilization Co., Hong Kong's Liwan Group (Chinese phonetic alphabet) and Ningbo Beilun Development Zone Electric Power & Fuel Co., Ltd. The venture owns an 8 million t/a atmospheric and vacuum distillation facility, with an annual crude oil processing capacity of 2.3 million tons. It is also capable of producing 750 000 tons of high-grade road asphalt per year and owns oil storages with combined capacity of 356 000 cubic meters. In addition, the company has a 50 000 tonnage dock and a 3 000 tonnage one, both self owned, with annual freight handling capacity of 4 million tons.
    China Offshore Oil & Gas Development, wholly owned by CNOOC, holds a 51% interest in CNOOC Ningbo Daxie.
    Zhoushan Hebon focuses on the production of oil products, operating a 250 000 t/a aromatics project at Dinghai in Zhoushan since 2008.
    "Zhonshan Hebon sources fuel oil from CNOOC Ningbo Daxie. If the deal is successful, Ningbo Daxie could become an integrated company," said an executive of CNOOC.
    At present, the oil products sold by CNOOC in the eastern China market are all offered by China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC) and Sinopec Group. The acquisition of Zhoushan Hebon would help CNOOC reduce relying on CNPC and Sinopec in the eastern China.