Sinopec 2009 Profit Rises

March 28th, 2010 - China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. (SNP: News , SNP.L), also known as Sinopec, reported that net profit attributable to equity shareholders of the company was RMB 61.76 billion or RMB 0.708 per share for 2009 in accordance with the International Financial Reporting Standards, compared to RMB 28.53 billion or RMB 0.289 per share in the prior year.

The company's turnover, other operating revenues and otherincome amounted to RMB 1,345.05 billion, representing a decrease of 10.0% over the same period in 2008.

In addition, the company's board of directors recommended a final dividend of RMB 0.11 per share, thus total dividend for the year reached 0.18 per share. - RTTNews

Sinopec to Build Gas Chemicals Plant in Kazakhstan

March 25th 2010 - China Petroleum & Chemical Corp., the Hong Kong-listed company known as Sinopec, won a contract to build a $1.7 billion polypropylene plant in western Kazakhstan.
Sinopec agreed to buy and export all the polypropylene produced at the facility, Kazakh Deputy Oil and Gas Minister Aset Magauov told reporters today in Almaty. The Export-Import Bank of China will provide a $1.26 billion loan for the project, he said.

TOO Kazakhstan Petrochemical Industries, 51 percent held by the London-traded unit of state-owned KazMunaiGaz National Co., will invest $300 million of its own money, and Kazakhstan will provide a “budget credit” of $140 million, Magauov said.

The polypropylene plant will form part of a gas chemicals complex, which will be able to produce 450,000 metric tons of polypropylene and 800,000 tons of polyethylene a year once completed in 2014, according to KazMunaiGaz. - Bloomberg

JP Morgan to buy 7.8 mil Sinopec shares in Hong Kong

March 15th, 2010 - U.S.-based financial holding company JPMorgan Chase & Co has raised its shareholding in China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. (Sinopec) to 9.01% from 8.97% on March 10, according to the bourse operator Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEx).

HKEx said in a statement that JPMorgan Chase has acquired 7.812 million H-shares in Sinopec for HK$47.887 million ($6.17 million). The average price of the share transaction was HK$6.13 apiece.

Sinopec has been attractive for some analysts based on effects of the gas price reform that positively effected Sinopec's profitability. Speculations that an asset injection may come from her parent company resurface from time to time, adding more upside for the stock.
H-shares of China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. (Sinopec) (NYSE:SNP) have been virtually unchanged since last Wednesday. - Chinavestor

Sinopec mulls oil refinery JV with ExxonMobil, Aramco

A worker checks equipment at a Sinopec oil refinery in Qingjiang

China, March, 9th, 2010 - Sinopec, China's largest oil refiner, is considering joining forces with two global oil conglomerates to build an oil refinery able to process 12 million tons of crude per year in Fujian, a source familiar with the matter said on Monday.

The project would expand Sinopec's existing integrated oil refinery and petrochemical complex in the province and would include cooperation with US' ExxonMobil and Saudi Aramco, the national oil company of Saudi Arabia, said former vice-governor of Fujian Jia Xitai, a deputy to the ongoing National People's Congress (NPC) on Monday.

The company, together with ExxonMobil and Saudi Aramco, started operations at their 40-billion-yuan ($5.86 billion) oil refining and petrochemical complex last year.
Rapidly growing demand for refined oil products in Fujian, an eastern coastal province, is fueling the project, said Jia. "It will further ensure our energy safety," he said.

Analysts said cooperation between the three companies would bring good synergy to the project. "ExxonMobil has advanced technologies, and Saudi Aramco can offer a sustainable supply of crude oil," said Lin Boqiang, professor with Xiamen University. Such large-scale petrochemical projects are seen to benefit China's petrochemical industry, as restructuring of the industry and technology upgrades would be the main focus for the sector in the long term, he added. - China Daily

Crude hits two-month high of $82 in New York

New York, March 9th, 2010 - Oil rose to a two-month high above $82 (Dh301) a barrel in New York amid growing confidence that the economic recovery is proceeding and set to bolster fuel demand.

Crude advanced for a second day after French President Nicolas Sarkozy said the group of nations using the euro is ready to rescue Greece should the government struggle to fund its deficit. Hedge-fund managers and other large speculators increased their bets on oil prices rising for a third week, according to the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

"Economic sentiment is getting better with some supportive comments on the European debt situation," said Andrey Kryuchenkov, an analyst with VTB Capital in London. - Bloomberg.