In the second half of 2020, China’s biggest refiner state-run Sinopec will raise its crude throughput following the first half’s loss.
In the July-December period, Sinopec plans to increase its crude throughput by 16% from the previous six months to 5.16 million bpd, taking the average of the year to 4.81 million bpd. It would be 83% of the company’s total refining capacity.
Natural gas output is targeted to rise to 580.5 bcf. However, this target would face a challenge from the government’s expectations of an increase in crude production amid the cut in capital expenditure.
Sinopec is targeting to slash this year’s capital expenditure by roughly 10% from the original plan of CNY143.3 billion (USD20.9 billion).
In the first half of the year, Sinopec posted a loss of CNY21.72 billion (USD3.17 billion), down from the CNY32.2 billion (USD4.7 billion) profit in the corresponding time of 2019. Revenue slumped by 31% annually to CNY1.03 trillion (USD150.38 billion).
The company’s refining margin slumped to USD0.24/barrel from USD7.68/barrel a year earlier. In the first quarter, margins hit -USD3.67/barrel but recovered in the second to USD2.94/barrel.
In the second quarter, the company’s performance improved sharply after posting a CNY19.1 billion (USD2.8 billion) loss in the previous quarter.
