Chinese state-run Sinopec on March 28 reported a 42.9% year/year drop in net profit last year owing to lower realised oil and natural gas prices. 

The company’s profit last year was 32.9bn yuan ($5bn) compared with 57.6bn yuan in 2019. Its realised oil price was down 32.4% yr/yr while gas price declined 13.4% yr/yr.  

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Sinopec expects demand for natural gas, oil and petrochemical products to continue rising in 2021. This year it plans to produce 280.82mn barrels of crude oil, and 1.2 trillion ft³ of natural gas. 

Capital expenditures for 2021 are budgeted at 167.2bn yuan, of which 66.8bn yuan will be invested in exploration and production with a focus on the Fuling and Weirong shale gas fields, Shengli and Northwest crude oil development projects, and the second phase LNG project in Tianjin and second phase LNG project in Shandong. Sinopec’s capital expenditure last year stood at 135bn yuan, down from 147bn yuan in 2019.  

Sinopec said that the second phase of Tianjin LNG terminal project is expected to be completed and put into operation in August 2023. The second phase consists of a new wharf, five new 220,000 m³ storage tanks, among other facilities. LNG processing capacity will reach 11mn mt/yr after phase two expansion project is completed. 

The second phase of the Weirong shale gas field with a production capacity of 2bn m³/yr is expected to become operational in December 2022. The first phase with a production capacity of 1bn m³/yr was completed in December 2020.