China's First Fully Integrated Refining, Petrochemicals and Fuels Marketing Joint Ventures with Foreign Participation



    Sinopec, Fujian Province, ExxonMobil and Saudi Aramco(1) today
    held an inauguration ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in
    Beijing to mark the formal government approval of Joint Venture
    Contracts and granting of business licenses for their two joint
    ventures in Fujian Province - Fujian Refining & Petrochemical Company
    Limited and Sinopec SenMei (Fujian) Petroleum Company Limited.

    The two joint ventures, with a total investment of about US$5
    billion, are the first fully integrated refining, petrochemicals and
    fuels marketing project with foreign participation in China.

    The Fujian Refining and Ethylene Joint Venture Project, located in
    Quanzhou, Fujian Province, will expand the existing refinery from
    80,000 barrels-per-day (4 million tons-per-year) to 240,000
    barrels-per-day (12 million tons-per-year). The upgraded refinery will
    primarily refine and process sour Arabian crude. In addition, the
    project will construct an 800,000 tons-per-year ethylene steam
    cracker, an 800,000 tons-per-year polyethylene unit, a 400,000
    tons-per-year polypropylene unit and an aromatics complex to produce
    700,000 tons-per-year of paraxylene. Support facilities including a
    300,000 ton crude berth and power cogeneration will also be built. The
    joint venture company, formally registered as "Fujian Refining &
    Petrochemical Company Limited," will be owned by Fujian Petrochemical
    Company Limited (FPCL) (50 percent), ExxonMobil China Petroleum and
    Petrochemical Company Limited (25 percent) and Saudi Aramco Sino
    Company Limited (25 percent). The project is expected to start up in
    early 2009.

    The Fujian Fuels Marketing Joint Venture, formally registered as
    "Sinopec SenMei (Fujian) Petroleum Company Limited," will manage and
    operate approximately 750 service stations and a network of terminals
    in Fujian Province. It will be owned by Sinopec (55 percent),
    ExxonMobil China Petroleum and Petrochemical Company Limited (22.5
    percent) and Saudi Aramco Sino Company Limited (22.5 percent).

    The ceremony was attended by Mr. Chen Jinhua, former Vice
    Chairman, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference; His
    Excellency Ali Al-Naimi, Minister of Petroleum & Mineral Resources,
    Saudi Arabia; Mr. Huang Xiaojing, Governor, Fujian Province; Mr. Chen
    Tonghai, President, China Petrochemical Corporation (Sinopec Group)
    and Chairman, China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (Sinopec Corp.);
    Mr. Abdallah S. Jum'ah, President & CEO, Saudi Aramco; and Mr. Steve
    Simon, Director and Senior Vice President, Exxon Mobil Corporation
    (NYSE:XOM). Other dignitaries from Chinese ministries, Saudi Aramco,
    ExxonMobil, Sinopec and Fujian Province were also present.

    Together, the Fujian Refining and Ethylene Joint Venture Project
    and the Fujian Fuels Marketing Joint Venture will serve to meet
    China's rapidly growing demand for petroleum products and
    petrochemicals. Synergies from these two world-scale, integrated
    businesses, closely coupled with the strengths of the four partners
    and a long-term crude supply agreement with Saudi Aramco,
    significantly enhance the competitiveness of this project, and help
    ensure its world-class performance. It will also boost the development
    of China's petrochemical industry and contribute to the economic
    development of Fujian Province.

    (1) Fujian Petrochemical Company Limited (FPCL) is owned 50% by
    China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation (Sinopec) and 50% by the
    Fujian Government. ExxonMobil China Petroleum and Petrochemical
    Company Limited (ExxonMobil) is a wholly owned affiliate of Exxon
    Mobil Corporation and Saudi Aramco Sino Company Limited (Saudi Aramco)
    is a wholly owned affiliate of Saudi Aramco.