Moscow, 17 December 2015. SIBUR, Russia's largest gas processing and petrochemicals company, and China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation ('Sinopec'), a major global petrochemical corporation, announced today the successful completion of Sinopec's 10% minority investment in SIBUR as a strategic investor.
The successful completion of the transaction will deepen the cooperation between the two companies and create value for both. The investment will also lead to better sharing of joint expertise and resources, which will strengthen not only the market leading positions of both companies, but also the strategic cooperation between China and Russia. Sinopec will have the right to nominate a representative for SIBUR's Board of Directors as a strategic investor.
'Sinopec's 10% minority investment in Sibur not only deepens the cooperation between the two companies, but also represents an active implementation of China's 'One Belt, One Road' policy. SIBUR's vertically-integrated upstream and petrochemicals business model is highly complementary with Sinopec's businesses. This transaction is in-line with our objective to strategically expand our petrochemical business overseas. Our continued partnership will help diversify and secure Sinopec's long-term sourcing of petrochemical products,' commented Wang Yupu, Chairman of Sinopec.
'The decision of Sinopec, a major player in the global petrochemical market, to acquire a stake in SIBUR confirms the success of the management's effort to transform the Company into a gas processing and petrochemical leader and comes as a recognition of SIBUR's high growth potential. Getting Sinopec on board as a strategic shareholder will help to build the synergy required to bring SIBUR's growth to a brand new level,' said Leonid Mikhelson, SIBUR's Chairman of the Board.
In September 2015, SIBUR and Sinopec signed a strategic partnership agreement during a state visit by Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation, to Xi Jinping, the President of the People's Republic of China. The successful completion of the transaction is an important step in the development of the strategic cooperation between the two countries.
The two parties will continue the dialogue to widen the scope of collaboration. As a next step, both companies are considering the participation of Sinopec in the Amur Gas Chemical Complex construction project as a strategic partner with SIBUR. Sinopec's integrated upstream and petrochemical capabilities will make a positive impact and benefit both parties.
For Editors:
China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation is a listed company on domestic and international stock exchanges with integrated upstream, midstream and downstream operations, strong oil & petrochemical core businesses and a complete marketing network. Sinopec Corp is one of the largest integrated energy and chemical company in China. The scope of its business mainly covers oil and gas exploration and production, extraction, pipeline transmission and marketing; oil refining; production, marketing, storage and transportation of petrochemicals, chemical fibers, chemical fertilizers and other chemical products; import, export and import/export agency business of crude oil, natural gas, refined oil products, petrochemicals, chemicals, and other commodities and technologies; research, development and application of technology and information.
SIBUR is a uniquely positioned vertically integrated gas processing and petrochemicals company. SIBUR owns and operates Russia's largest gas processing business in terms of associated petroleum gas processing volumes, and is a leader in the Russian petrochemicals industry.
As of September 2015, SIBUR operated 26 production sites located all over Russia, had over 1,400 large customers engaged in the energy, chemical, fast moving consumer goods (FMCG), automotive, construction and other industries in approximately 75 countries worldwide and employed over 25,000 personnel.