Some refineries in China are operating at above 100% rates as profit margins increased, an industry survey showed. The 8.5 million tons/year Sinopec-SK Wuhan Petrochemical refinery in Hubei planned to run at 105% of its capacity last month. According to the survey, seven refineries with a total capacity of 1.49 million bpd run at more than 100% capacity.
ZPC boosted runs from around 120% in May to almost 130% of its nameplate capacity of 20 million tons/year in June. Meanwhile, the 20 million tons/year Hengli Petrochemical refinery operated at around 115% in June, relatively steady from the previous month. State refiners Sinopec, PetroChina, CNOOC, and Sinochem, have increased crude throughput to an average of 80% of capacity in June compared to 76% in May, and 79% in June last year.
Meanwhile, in Japan, gasoline and gasoil consumption has recovered faster than expected after the government lifted the state of emergency restrictions. However, refiners would be unlikely to increase runs this month as demand for jet fuel remains sluggish. This means that Japan may import cargoes to compensate for any shortfall due to the low domestic refinery runs.
