Shell Singapore to consider divesting assets
Anglo-Dutch energy giant Shell is considering divesting its Singapore petrochemical assets, with three Chinese firms reported to be bidding for the assets.
China National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC) and global energy and commodity trader Vitol Group are listed as potential buyers for its Singapore refinery assets, according to a Reuters report. The list also includes Chinese chemical producers Eversun Holdings and Befar Group.
The companies have been invited to submit formal bids by the end of February 2024, with Shell aiming to finalise the transaction by the end of 2024. The assets for sale include a 237,000 barrel-per-day oil refinery and a 1 million tonne/year ethylene plant. Shell initiated a strategic review of these assets in June 2023, with Goldman Sachs managing the potential sale.
In April 2023, Shell announced that it had cancelled its plan to explore two projects—a biofuels unit and a Group II base oil plant in Singapore.
Shell has announced its ambition to produce around 2 million tonnes of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) a year by 2025 globally. To support this, Shell has outlined plans for a biofuels facility, subject to final investment decision, at the Shell Energy and Chemicals Park Singapore. The planned facility was to produce 550,000 tonnes of low-carbon fuels a year, including SAF.
In line with the asset review, Shell has recently sold its 77.4% stake in a Pakistani-listed subsidiary to Saudi Arabia’s Wafi Energy for an undisclosed amount. The sale marks the Anglo-Dutch energy giant’s exit from Pakistan after more than 75 years.
Singapore is Shell’s largest petrochemical production and export centre in the Asia Pacific.
