China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment announced earlier this week that 19 independent refineries in Dongying city, Shandong, had violated environmental regulations. These refineries, with a combined capacity of 60.4 million tons/year, were found to have built extra capacity without the required approval, the ministry said, without specifying the plants.
In addition to those Dongying-based refineries, the ministry also found that Shandong Guanyue Petrochemical had added 3.5 million tons/year of refining capacity without clearances. It also found that Dongcheng Holdings operated crude distillation units (CDUs) that should have been mothballed.
Independent refiners with a total capacity of 169.4 million are based in Shandong. That represents 52% of China’s independent refining capacity. These refiners, also known as teapots, have been subject to various inspections by different authorities, which has affected their throughput and demand for imported crude oil.
