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Waiting game on reforms in oil industry

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Titan Petrochemicals Group is hedging its bets on its oil storage facilities business plan as uncertainties cloud the mainland's regulations on refined oil trading and pricing policies.

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The oil trading and shipping company is diversifying into the storage business and has designated the first phase (370,000 square metres) of its one million cubic metres of oil storage facilities under construction in Nansha, Guangdong, to be for fuel oil.

It can adjust the remaining facilities to store fuel oil, diesel, petrol or petrochemicals as construction will not be completed until the end of next year.

Titan is targeting international major oil producers and traders as its primary customers.

While the refined oil wholesale market is officially supposed to be opened to foreign participation in December next year under World Trade Organisation entry commitments, Beijing has yet to clarify regulations on control of foreign firms' participation.

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Presumably, foreign firms will be allowed to import refined oil products from overseas to be wholesaled in China, so they will no longer have to rely on PetroChina and China Petroleum & Chemical Corp as their sole sources of refined oil.

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