PetroChina latest China oil major to consider Aramco listing
BEIJING PetroChina (601857.SS) (0857.HK) will consider taking part in national oil giant Saudi Aramco's initial public offering based on market conditions, it said on Thursday, the second Chinese oil major to discuss becoming an investor this week.
"Saudi Aramco has raised this plan to PetroChina," president and vice-chairman Wang Dongjin said on Thursday at a briefing following the announcement of China's largest oil and gas producer's 2016 results.
"I think we will make our evaluation and study based on the market situation," Wang said.
On Monday, Sinopec Corp (600028.SS) said the Aramco president had visited the firm and both sides would have talks on the IPO, which is expected to be the world's largest equity sale.
Wang said PetroChina was also in talks with Aramco on its Yunnan Petrochemical plant and about the possibility of supplying its enhanced oil recovery technology to Saudi oil fields.
"We are also having discussions on the joint venture Yunnan Petrochemical. We are making very active progress," he said.
Sources told Reuters in 2015 that Aramco was looking to invest $1-1.5 billion in its new refinery in the country's southwest. [nL3N1H13NV ]
The company expects oil prices to range between $50-58 per barrel this year, recovering from the multi-year lows hit early in 2016.
(Reporting by Gabriel Yiu and Raffaele Huang; Writing by Josephine Mason; Editing by Tom Hogue and Susan Thomas)