Sept 11 (Reuters) - An 8.3 billion pound ($13 billion)project to build a refinery and petrochemical plant in easternChina involving Royal Dutch Shell has been shelvedafter losing political support, the Telegraph newspaperreported, citing sources.
The plant in the eastern city of Taizhou -- a tie-up withChinese state-backed oil firm China National Petroleum Corp(CNPC) and Gulf energy giant Qatar Petroleum -- would haverefined 20 million tonnes of crude and produced 1.2 milliontonnes of ethylene a year. Construction had been due to startlast year.
The newspaper said the project appeared to have fallenvictim to local opposition and politics.
It quoted a senior petrochemical executive as saying theChinese had confirmed the project had been cancelled, possiblydue to land problems.
A second source told the newspaper the project would bepermanently suspended. ()
A Shell spokesman told the Telegraph that the company wasstill conducting a feasibility study into the project. Shell andCNPC could not be reached for comment.
A high-level Chinese government probe into corruption atCNPC widened at the end of August, with three additional seniorofficials at the energy giant being investigated over allegedwrongdoing.