State energy firms Saudi Aramco and Sinopec plans to build a new refinery-petrochemical complex in southeast China which will commence operations by the end of 2025.

The companies have signed a heads of agreement to build the complex at Gulei, Fujian province, which will include a 320,000 barrels per day (bpd) refinery and a 1.5 million tonnes per year cracker, Aramco said in a statement on Sunday. It did not provide an investment figure for the project.

In addition, Aramco, Sinopec and SABIC have signed an initial agreement to study the economic and technical feasibility of developing a new petrochemical complex to be integrated with an existing refinery in Yanbu, Saudi Arabia.

“These projects represent an opportunity to contribute to a modern, efficient and integrated downstream sector in both China and Saudi Arabia,” Aramco Senior Vice President of Downstream Mohammed Y. Al Qahtani said.

“They also underpin our long-term commitment to remain a reliable supplier of energy and chemicals to Asia’s largest economy.”

Aramco seeks to expand its liquids to chemicals capacity to up to 4 million bpd by 2030.

Aramco and Sinopec jointly operate Yanbu Aramco Sinopec Refining Company (YASREF), a 400,000-bpd refinery located in Yanbu.

Nasdaq by Florence Tan, December 27, 2022