China independent refiners' April crude imports fall to 4-month low

Singapore — Crude and bitumen blend imports for China's independent refineries in April fell 8.7% month on month to 3.64 million b/d, or 14.92 million mt, due to heavy refinery maintenance and high feedstock inventories at ports, data collected by S&P Global Platts showed May 10.

Imports in April fell to a four-month low and were largely in line with market expectations, with crude imports starting to decrease in March when refinery maintenance began to kick in. The trend is likely to extend in May.

In April, about 21.2 million mt/year of capacity was shut for maintenance at seven Shandong independent refineries, the highest in a month since March 2020.

Moreover, crude feedstocks at ports remained high in April. Major ports in eastern Shandong province, home to the country's independent refiners, continue to see high inventories.

Combined stocks at major ports—including Dongjiakou, Qingdao, Rizhao, Yantai, Dongying, Laizhou and Longkou— stood at a record 6.17 million mt on April 29, mainly due to shutdown at refineries, data from local energy information provider JLC showed.

Independent refineries in Shandong received a combined 10 million mt of crude in April, down 24.3% from March to a 12-month low. The refineries last took less crude in April 2020 at 8.95 million mt.

However, Hengli Petrochemical (Dalian) Refinery boosted imports by 152.4% month on month to 2.46 million mt in April, partly compensating the decline in its Shandong peers.

Total feedstock imports for the independent refineries gained 13% from April 2020, raising January-April volumes to 27.9% on year to 64.97 million mt, or 3.97 million b/d.

Expected cargo arrivals in May are likely to remain low as maintenance at refineries continues, trimming crude demand, according to sources.

"The new cargo arrivals is likely to pick up in June, since maintenances will largely end from late May," said an analyst with JLC.

Platts collects information covering crude and bitumen blend imported by independent refineries in Shandong province, Tianjin, Zhoushan and Dalian, including 38 crude import quota holders and non-quota holders.

The barrels include those imported directly by the refiners as well as cargoes bought by trading companies on behalf of the independent refiners that were discharged into tanks.

The 38 refiners have been awarded a combined 104.68 million mt in crude quotas in the first batch, accounting for 88.3% of the county's total allocations for the independent refining sector to-date.