Riyadh out to conquer Beijing and oil in Yunnan
The Saudis want to overtake Russia in crude oil sales to China. Plan dates back to 2011, but was stopped by the Chinese government. Meanwhile, the use of electric cars in China is growing.
Beijing (AsiaNews/Agencies) – Saudi Arabian Oil Co., known as Saudi Aramco, is reportedly engaged in talks with the China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC) over a deal that did not go through six years ago to build a refinery in China’s Yunnan province.
The plan had already been in the works in 2011, but failed because the Chinese government blocked all new refineries. Now Saudi Arabia is back knocking on China’s door.
According to Caixin, a business publication, the revived proposal is part of Riyadh’s seduction campaign to gain access to China’s market.
China is in fact Saudi Arabia’s third largest customer, but the People's Republic now buys more oil from Russia. In 2016, China bought 51 million tonnes of Saudi crude oil against 52.5 million from Russia.
One of the high points in Riyadh’s seduction campaign came last March, when King Salman travelled to Beijing where he signed 14 deals worth US$ 65 billion.
One of them is a huge refinery and chemical complex in north-eastern China, in Panjin (Liaoning), which at full capacity will be able to refine 15 million tonnes of oil and produce 1 million tonnes of ethylene each year.
China is one of the world’s largest crude oil importers (about 375 million tonnes in 2016), but its energy market is changing.
According to Bloomberg New Energy Finance, by 2029, car buyers in nearly every major economy will find that electric vehicles cost less than those powered by an internal combustion engine. By 2040, one of every two newly purchased vehicles will be electric.
In the first half of 2017, electric vehicle sales surged almost 63 per cent in China, as the government has created incentives for both manufacturers and buyers.
.png)
