China Denies Sinopec Access to Commercial Oil Reserves

The government of China has reportedly rejected a request from its leading refining major to access 13 million metric tons of national commercial oil reserves. This volume, which equates to roughly 95 million barrels, was sought to offset an anticipated supply gap as tensions involving the United States, Israel, and Iran threaten exports from the Middle East. As the world’s largest refiner by capacity, the company relies on the Middle East for nearly 60% of its total crude oil imports, averaging about 4 million barrels per day. The requested amount would cover approximately 19 days of processing or 40 days of imports from the region, including regular supplies from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.