US, Saudi, Chinese firms announce $5 billion energy deal

0 Comments | AFP, March, 2007

BEIJING (AFP) — US oil giant Exxon Mobil, Saudi Aramco and Sinopec announced here Friday two joint ventures worth about five billion dollars to operate 750 service stations and a petrochemical refinery in China.

The announcement of the project, Exxon Mobil's largest single investment in China, marked the culmination of 12 years of preparations, according to the American company.

"It's our biggest project so far in China," Sarah Du, a Beijing-based Exxon Mobil spokeswoman, told AFP.

"Developing this type of joint venture is a very complicated process and Fujian is the most complex so far in China due to the nature of its integrated business," she said.

In a joint statement, the companies called the two joint ventures "the first fully integrated...