China, the largest energy consumer, takes advantage of the fall of world oil prices and fills up its oil storage. The PRC's government uses all the available supply channels and buys the black oil at a low price. The PetroChina board of directors announced the first contract of purchase of Colombian oil that early was too expensive for China. According to the specialists, the country turns the situation to its advantage; it is also favored by the competition among the oil producing countries. Every producer aims at the guaranteed access to the Asian commodity markets and at the desired contract of delivery to China. The second largest oil consumer in the world dictates terms to the greatest OPEC producers. “China will just look to get the cheapest crude possible from whatever source it can. I expect a lot more volumes flowing to China in particular,” said Virendra Chauhan, an analyst at Energy Aspects Ltd. In September only, the import rose 7.8% to 27.6 million tons or 6.74 million barrels a day against the previous year. The number of oilers delivered to China's ports reached the 9-month high. The experts are sure that it is not a limit. According to the forecasts, the Chinese refinery capacity will increase 20% to 800 million tons a year by 2020. For comparison, at the end of this year the figure will reach 668 million tons, according to China National Petroleum Corporation and Technology Research Institution.
