Japan's Fuji Oil eyes possible alliance with Japanese counterparts in refining, petrochemical

02-Dec-13

Fuji Oil may consider entering into alliances with other companies in the Japanese refining and petrochemical sector, where it can benefit, as per a senior company official in Platts. Fuji Oil, that operates a operates the 143,000 bpd Sodegaura refinery at Chiba, could consider such an alliance with refiners or petrochemical companies which have plants in Chiba, Tokyo Bay, but he did not rule out other areas outside the refining and petrochemical complex in Tokyo Bay if there were benefits. Sumitomo Chemical has a 6.46% stake in Fuji Oil, whose major shareholders include Tokyo Electric Power Company (8.74%), Fidelity (7.73%), Kuwait Petroleum Corp. (7.43%), the Saudi Arabian government (7.43%), Showa Shell (6.57%), and Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (3.51%). Fuji Oil's possible alliances could come at a time when a number of Japanese refiners are weighing alliances in refining and oil products supply systems to optimize their operations further in the face of diminishing domestic demand. At Chiba alone, refiners Cosmo Oil, TonenGeneral and Mitsui Oil are jointly pursuing ways to optimize refining operations at two refineries in the Keiyo Rinkai Industrial Zone under a memorandum of understanding signed on September 30. Fuji Oil's Sodegaura refinery is adjacent to Sumitomo Chemical's Chiba Works. It is also close to Idemitsu Kosan's 220,000 b/d Chiba refinery. In 2010, Idemitsu and Mitsui Chemicals integrated their steam cracker operations in Chiba under a 50:50 joint operating unit.