China's goal of increasing foreign investment is in its petroleum industry is making headway.
A Sino-U.S. joint venture began construction late last month of a lubricants plant in Northeast China.
China's first joint venture with a foreign company in shipbuilding started up early this year.
Meantime, units of China National Offshore Oil Corp. and Singapore Marine Engineering Co. (Sembawang) plan a joint venture service company.
LUBRICANTS PLANT
Puqing Lubricating Specialties (Zhuhai) Co. is a joint venture between Daqing General Petrochemical Works, Xizngzhou District Petroleum Co. of Zhuhai, and Lubricating Specialties co. of the U.S.
The company began construction in late January of a 30,000 metric ton/year lubricants plant at Zhuhai in South China's guangdong province.
Beijing's Xinhua News Agency said the group plans to invest about $10 million on the project and will process crude from Northwest china's Daqing field, the country's biggest oil field.
About 70% of the plant's production will be exported.
SHIPBUILDING VENTURE
Shanghai Edward Shipbuilding Co. Ltd. is a joint venture of Germany's Schierack Beteiligungs KG and Shanghai's Zhonghua and Jiangnan shipyards.
The company plans to produce two 15,000 cu m liquefied natural gas carriers/year for export markets, China Daily reported. Two LNG carrier orders are expected soon.
Schierack holds a 40% interest in the venture, which will invest about $5 million to modernize Hunan shipyard.
Horst Schierack, managing director of Schierack, said, "Nowadays labor costs in Europe are increasing drastically, which has resulted in the European shipbuilding industry losing its competitiveness. Thus the improvement of the investment environment and the comparatively cheap labor costs in Shanghai are attractive to foreign investors."
He noted China's labor efficiency is low, however, and plans to implement German style management to increase efficiency.
SERVICE COMPANY
Sembawang, Nanhai East Oil Corp., Nanhai West Oil Corp, and Chiwan Petroleum Supply Base Co. plan a joint venture, Chiwan Offshore Petroleum Repair/Maintenance Co., to provide fabrication and installation services for offshore drilling rigs.
The venture, capitalized at about $1 million, also will service pressure vessels and steel structure and offer maintenance services for floating production storage and offloading vessels, OPEC News Agency reported.
The company at first will focus on business from China's offshore industry but is studying opportunities in Viet Nam, Thailand, and Philippines as well.
Sembawang will hold a 25% interest in the venture, Nanhai East 25%, Nanhai West 20%, and Chiwan Petroleum 20%.
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