Chinese refiners to feel the squeeze
China’s crude refining throughput is set to decline quarter-on-quarter in Q1 2022, amid mounting pressure from multiple fronts
China’s crude runs slowed in the first two months of this year, particularly in the northeast of the country, where the government’s desire for clean air during the Winter Olympics has led to a pause on emission-intensive industrial activities, including refining. Some refineries—mostly independent operators in the eastern province of Shandong—started to reduce activity in January. Crude runs in Shandong had dipped below two-thirds of provincial capacity by the second half of the month. But the Olympics have forced deeper cuts, with the biggest impact falling on state-owned refineries in the Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei regions, where state-controlled firms CNPC, Sinopec and Cnooc operate clos
Also in this section
28 March 2024
The country’s largest gas field is a bright spot for the North Sea, boasting cleaner operations amid a changing mood in Europe over hydrocarbons
28 March 2024
Whether OPEC+ starts to unwind its oil production cuts from June will depend on heavily debated unfolding supply-demand balances
28 March 2024
As a gas supply shortfall looms, balancing regulatory flexibility with energy security and investor confidence will be critical
27 March 2024
Oil producers have to untangle the increasingly complicated relationship with their natural resources