The costs of competition in China’s oil market
The business models of refining incumbents face disruption from integrated new entrants
Oil market watchers are used to thinking about China as a downstream market—dependent on imports to meet three-quarters of its crude requirements and as a massive market for transport fuels gasoline, diesel and jet. To the extent that we tend to be aware of China as the producer of nearly a third of global manufacturing output, it is usually through indirect association, where a higher PMI might signal stronger demand for diesel or naphtha. But a new generation of mega-refineries coming onstream in China is putting these two worlds on a collision course. New entrants The quest for upstream integration lured private sector textile producers Rongsheng and Hengli into China’s refining sector. H
Also in this section
3 May 2024
Upcoming elections are likely to deliver a win for the party of president Andres Lopez Obrador, but analysts differ over to what degree his successor will stick to his energy policies
2 May 2024
Faster-than-expected economic growth fails to mask macro imbalances and shifting structural oil product trends
1 May 2024
Energean CEO Mathios Rigas looks to results of critical Anchois appraisal well
30 April 2024
While its regional neighbours reap the rewards of oil and gas success, Iraq’s hydrocarbons sector is lagging behind