Active Mixed AidData Chinese Aid

China Eximbank provides $1.818 billion loan for Phase 2 of Abadan Refinery Upgrade Project (Linked to Record ID#85280)

¥1.82M RMB

Funder	Export-Import Bank of China (China Eximbank)
Recipient Organization	Government of Iran
Country	Iran
Start Date	Jan 01, 2018
End Date	Apr 11, 2029
Duration	4,118 days
Number of Grantees	1
Roles	Recipient
Data Source	AidData Chinese Aid
Grant ID	`67618`

Grant Description

China Eximbank provides $1.818 billion loan for Phase 2 of Abadan Refinery Upgrade Project On December 27, 2017, China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (Sinopec Ltd.) signed an EPC contract worth approximately $2.139 billion (RMB 14 billion) for Phase 2 of the Abadan Refinery Upgrade Project. China Eximbank subsequently agreed to provide a loan to finance 85% of the cost ($1.818 billion) of the EPC contract.

The Abadan refinery (Persian: پالایشگاه آبادان‎) is an oil refinery located in the city of Abadan near the coast of the Persian Gulf.

Phase 2 of the Abadan Refinery Upgrade Project involves building atmospheric and vacuum units, as well as gasoline, diesel and kerosene distillation units, a sulfur unit and a catalytic cracking unit. Abadan, with 400,000 b/d nameplate capacity, aims to stabilize its throughput at 360,000 barrels per day.

It ultimately expects, following the four-phase upgrade program, to reduce fuel oil output by 40%. Phase 2 commenced in February 2017, and as of May 2019, it had achieved a 33% completion rate. It was expected to reach a 65% completion rate by the end of 2019. However, in mid-2020, the project was temporarily suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The project was expected to be completed in 2022. However, Phase 2 was inaugurated on March 20, 2023. China Eximbank also financed Phase 1 of the Abadan Refinery Upgrade Project (see Record ID#85280).

📋 Staff Comments

The Chinese project title is 伊朗Abadan炼厂产品升级项目 or 伊朗Abadan煉廠產品升級項目二期. The Persian project title is فاز دوم پالایشگاه آبادان or پالایشگاه آبادان‎ or فاز دوم پالایشگاه آبادان .
The China Eximbank loan that supported this project is not included in the Overseas Development Finance Dataset that Boston University’s Global Development Policy Center published in December 2020.
For the time being, AidData assumes that the loan commitment year was the year (2018) following the signing of the December 2017 EPC contract.
Given that China Eximbank agreed to provide a loan to finance 85% of the cost ($1.818 billion) of the EPC contract, AidData assumes that the loan was issued in the form of a buyer's credit. This issue warrants further investigation.

📚 Sources & References

عبور 12 طرح از هفت خان تأمین مالی خارجی/ 38 درصد فاینانس‌ها به نیمه‌راه رسید+جدول, 12 طرح از هفت خان تأمین مالیخارجی/ 38 درصد فاینانس‌ها بهنیمه‌راه رسید+جدول
The Energy Bulletin Weekly: 18 May 2020, ارائه گزارش بانک مرکزی در خصوص توافقات تأمین مالی با چین در جلسه هیئت
Sinopec persists with Iran refinery upgrade
Sinopec to upgrade Iran’s Abadan refinery
Sinosure provides US$1.5bn Guarantee in Iranian Rail Project
中石化炼化工程拿下70海外大单，国际业务再次发力
中石化炼化工程(02386)与伊朗国家石油签订Abadan炼厂总承包合同涉资68.58亿元_中石化炼化工程_伊朗国家石油-智通财经网
Sinopec Signs $1b Abadan Refinery Expansion Deal, پیشرفت فاز دوم طرح توسعه ظرفیت پالایشگاه آبادان به ۶۵ درصد می_رسد - شانا, بزرگترین سرمایه‌گذاری پسابرجامی در پالایشگاه آبادان
REFINERY NEWS ROUNDUP_ Partial works in Middle East boost gasoline values _ S&P Global Platts
Sinopec Persists With Iran Refinery Upgrade
SINOPEC - 截至2017年12月31日止年度業績公告, اخبار - جاسک هاب نفتی منطقه می شود, وبگاه شرکت پالایش نفت آبادان _
China's Overseas Development Finance
China-Iran Relations: A Limited but Enduring Strategic Partnership
Raeisi inaugurates Abadan Refinery Phase 2 Loan applications and disbursements are still being received and processed as the projects continue to evolve. Ongoing monitoring and evaluation are in place to ensure project continuity.

All Grantees

Government of Iran

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