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Market Chatter: Chinese Refiners Delay 500,000 bpd Capacity Amid Hormuz Supply Disruptions

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China's top refiners have delayed two major projects slated for this year following Middle Eastern crude supply disruptions via the Strait of Hormuz, Reuters reported Monday citing sources.

The Saudi Aramco-backed Huajin Aramco Petrochemical, joint venture has delayed the start-up of its 300,000 barrel-per-day Panjin refinery autumn, while PetroChina indefinitely postponed a 200,000 bpd Dalian expansion, the report said.

Hapco was originally scheduled to start between May and June but sources familiar with the project confirmed its timeline has been pushed back to September or early October, as per the report.

The delay to new processing capacity impacts about 500,000 bpd and will limit prompt physical crude demand as Chinese domestic operators grapple with weak consumption due to aggressive domestic electric vehicle adoption, the report added.

None of the parties involved responded immediately to' request for comments.

(Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)

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