China's state-run Sinochem Corp has started expanding a facility that will become the country's largest strategic oil reserve site after a two-year delay due to environmental and safety concerns.

The site, on Aoshan island off the manufacturing hub of Zhejiang province in east China, will eventually hold 50 million barrels, or roughly 10 days of China's current rate of net crude imports, after adding a 19-million-barrel farm to its existing 31-million-barrel base.

The world's second-largest oil consumer filled its first batch of strategic petroleum reserve (SPR) tanks totalling 102 million barrels by early 2009 and kicked off building the phase-two tanks in late 2009.

The government selected eight sites for its second phase of emergency stockpiling.

China, which aims to eventually meet the OECD standard of stockpiling enough oil to cover 90 days of net oil imports, has never disclosed second phase details such as location, individual capacity, investment or construction schedule.

According to top energy group CNPC, China's total SPR capacity reached 24.38 million tonnes or 178 million barrels by the end of 2010, suggesting that 76 million barrels were added to the project's second phase by then.

Below is a list of details of the three stages of China's SPR plans, according to Chinese media reports, industry officials and occasionally government announcements.

FIRST PHASE

The filling of first phase of 102 million barrels took 30 months since the first batch of tanks was ready in October 2006.

The prices for the crude oil stored in the first phase averaged at about $58 a barrel, Zhang Guobao, former head of the National Energy Administration has said.

The four bases in theChina's state-run Sinochem Corp has started expanding a facility that will become the country's largest strategic oil reserve site after a two-year delay due to environmental and safety concerns.

The site, on Aoshan island off the manufacturing hub of Zhejiang province in east China, will eventually hold 50 million barrels, or roughly 10 days of China's current rate of net crude imports, after adding a 19-million-barrel farm to its existing 31-million-barrel base.

The world's second-largest oil consumer filled its first batch of strategic petroleum reserve (SPR) tanks totalling 102 million barrels by early 2009 and kicked off building the phase-two tanks in late 2009.

The government selected eight sites for its second phase of emergency stockpiling.

China, which aims to eventually meet the OECD standard of stockpiling enough oil to cover 90 days of net oil imports, has never disclosed second phase details such as location, individual capacity, investment or construction schedule.

According to top energy group CNPC, China's total SPR capacity reached 24.38 million tonnes or 178 million barrels by the end of 2010, suggesting that 76 million barrels were added to the project's second phase by then.

Below is a list of details of the three stages of China's SPR plans, according to Chinese media reports, industry officials and occasionally government announcements.

FIRST PHASE

The filling of first phase of 102 million barrels took 30 months since the first batch of tanks was ready in October 2006.

The prices for the crude oil stored in the first phase averaged at about $58 a barrel, Zhang Guobao, former head of the National Energy Administration has said.

The four bases in the first phase, with capacity in millions of barrels and investments in billions of yuan.

SECOND PHASE

Total storage capacity in the second phase was initially planned at 26.8 million cubic metres of oil, or 170 million barrels, but real capacity could top the plan as local.

governments were actively lobbying for more projects to improve regional oil supply security.

The National Energy Administration has also enlisted private firms to store crude oil for the government.

In choosing sites for the second phase, China will priorities underground storage tanks and landlocked regions.

Liu Qi, a deputy chief of the National Energy Administration, said that some second phase storage will be the result of expanding first phase facilities.

The locations below were reported as the potential sites for the stockpiling plans, but the government has never officially confirmed all selected sites for the second phase.
The capacity is in millions of barrels and investments in billions of yuan.

THIRD PHASE

Total capacity of 28 million tonnes, or 204 million barrels, to be built in underground storage in landlocked regions of China. Chinese media has said they will be built by 2020.