- Heads of agreement signed with Sinopec for Gulei II integrated complex
   - 320,000 barrels-per-day refinery and 1.5 million tons-per-year petrochemical cracker
   - Aramco, Sinopec and SABIC agree MoU for petrochemical project in Yanbu

The Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Aramco), one of the world’s leading integrated energy and chemicals companies, China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation (Sinopec) and SABIC, are exploring collaboration across refining and petrochemical projects in China and Saudi Arabia.

Aramco and Sinopec, one of the world’s largest energy and petrochemical corporations, have signed heads of agreement for a greenfield project in Gulei, Fujian Province, which plans to include a 320,000 barrels-per-day refinery and 1.5 million tons-per-year petrochemical cracker complex. It is expected to commence operations by the end of 2025.

Additionally, Aramco, SABIC and Sinopec signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on December 15, to study the economic and technical feasibility of developing a new petrochemical complex to be integrated with an existing refinery in Yanbu, Saudi Arabia.

Mohammed Y. Al Qahtani, Aramco Senior Vice President of Downstream, said: “These projects represent an opportunity to contribute to a modern, efficient and integrated downstream sector in both China and Saudi Arabia. They also underpin our long-term commitment to remain a reliable supplier of energy and chemicals to Asia’s largest economy.”

The announcements support Aramco’s role as a reliable energy supplier to China as the company seeks to expand its liquids to chemicals capacity to up to 4 million barrels per day by 2030. The collaboration also aligns with Sinopec’s vision to become a world-leading energy and petrochemical corporation, providing quality products and reliable energy to benefit the lives of people worldwide.

About Aramco

Aramco is a global integrated energy and chemicals company driven by the core belief that energy is opportunity. From producing approximately one in every eight barrels of the world’s oil supply to developing new energy technologies, our global team is dedicated to creating impact in all that we do. We focus on making our resources more dependable, sustainable and useful, promoting stability and long-term growth around the world.

About Sinopec

China Petrochemical Corporation (the Company) was established in July 1998 on the basis of the former China Petrochemical Corporation, a move by the central government to strategically restructure the petroleum and petrochemical industry. It was further incorporated as a limited liability corporation in August 2018. A super large petroleum and petrochemical group, the Company has a registered capital of 326.5 billion yuan with the chairman of the board of Sinopec Group serving as its legal representative. Headquartered in Beijing, it exercises the investor's rights to the related state assets owned by its full subsidiaries, controlled companies and share-holding companies, including receiving returns on assets, making major decisions and appointing managers. It operates, manages and supervises state assets according to related laws, and shoulders the corresponding responsibility of maintaining and increasing the value of state assets.

About SABIC

SABIC is a global diversified chemicals company, headquartered in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. It manufactures on a global scale in the Americas, Europe, Middle East and Asia Pacific, making distinctly different kinds of products: chemicals, commodity and high performance plastics, agri-nutrients and metals.

SABIC supports its customers by identifying and developing opportunities in key end-use applications such as construction, medical devices, packaging, agri-nutrients, electrical and electronics, transportation and clean energy. Production in 2020 was 60.8 million metric tons.

The company has more than 32,000 employees worldwide and operates in around 50 countries. Fostering innovation and a spirit of ingenuity, SABIC has 9,946 global patent filings, and has significant research resources with innovation hubs in five key geographies – USA, Europe, Middle East, South Asia and North Asia.