China’s Qualified Refineries Eager for Remaining Import Quotas

China's qualified refineries are eager to receive the remaining crude import quotas for 2023 to aid their crude procurement plans, according to Platts.

• Market sources estimated up to a combined 37.8m mt of quotas will be released, comprising 10.45m mt of the remaining quotas for 15 refineries and an extra 27.36m mt to 18 refineries which have been allocated 100% of their annual quotas.
• Meanwhile, 14 small-sized independent refineries expect around 7.45 million mt of crude import quotas to be allocated by end-September.
• "Most small-sized refineries still have enough quotas to cover their imports for October cargoes, so they are calling for more quotas to be allocated for November cargo imports," an analyst told Platts.
• Some refineries in Shandong, having exhausted their quotas and taken extra volumes that are headed to China amid expectations that allocations will be made soon, are more anxious than their peers, Platts said.
• Refineries built and operated by state-owned companies, namely Sinopec, PetroChina, CNOOC and Sinochem, do not need quotas to import crude.