Air Products and Sinopec Form Joint Venture to Serve Nanjing Market in China
LEHIGH VALLEY, Pa. (December 19, 2006) - Air Products (NYSE:APD), a globally diversified gases and chemicals company, today announced plans to form a joint venture (JV) company with Nanjing Chemical Industries Co Ltd (Nanjing Chemical), a subsidiary of Sinopec Assets Management Corporation, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of China Petrochemical Corporation (Sinopec Group), to produce hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen and liquid products. A Letter of Intent to form the JV was recently signed in Beijing by the two companies.
Air Products and Nanjing Chemical will jointly build and operate an air separation unit and a hydrogen facility in Nanjing. Slated to come on-stream in 2009, this facility will have the capacity to produce more than 100 million standard cubic feet per day (MMSCFD) of hydrogen for Nanjing Chemical and other customers in the Nanjing area to meet their industrial gas needs.
"We sincerely thank Sinopec and Nanjing Chemical for the faith that they have shown in Air Products by selecting us to be their partner. The signing of this joint venture Letter of Intent marks a great moment as our two companies come together. I very much look forward to the successful partnership that the venture will bring," said John McGlade, president and chief operating officer of Air Products.
"This project reflects the new trend of global economy. It meets Sinopec's requirement of resource optimization and benefits the local economy," said Leng Tai Min, director and vice president of Sinopec Assets Management Corporation.
"The signing of this Letter of Intent signifies that both companies have reached a new milestone in establishing a strategic partnership in the industrial gas business," said Yuan Jian Ning, president of Nanjing Chemical.
Air Products supplied an air separation plant to Nanjing Chemical in 1997 when the two companies collaborated to produce liquid products for the Nanjing market. The new facility will produce hydrogen for downstream applications to make ammonia, caprolactam, aniline and other chemical products. Air Products is a global leader in hydrogen production and distribution and is well recognized in the industry for the reliable and safe production of hydrogen.
Air Products was one of the first international industrial gas companies to enter China with a joint venture in 1987. It has since established a solid infrastructure in Northern, Southern and Eastern China.
About Air Products
Air Products (NYSE: APD) serves customers in industrial, energy, technology and healthcare markets worldwide with a unique portfolio of atmospheric gases, process and specialty gases, performance materials and equipment and services. Founded in 1940, Air Products has built leading positions in key growth markets such as semiconductor materials, refinery hydrogen, home healthcare services, natural gas liquefaction, and advanced coatings and adhesives. The company is recognized for its innovative culture, operational excellence and commitment to safety and the environment and is listed in the Dow Jones Sustainability and FTSE4Good Indices. The company has annual revenues of $9 billion, operations in over 40 countries, and nearly 20,000 employees around the globe. For more information, visit www.airproducts.com or www.airproducts.com.cn.
About China Petrochemical Corporation (Sinopec Group)
China Petrochemical Corporation (Sinopec Group) is a Chinese integrated energy and chemical company with upstream, midstream and downstream operations. The principal operations of Sinopec Group and its subsidiaries include: exploring, developing, producing and trading crude oil and natural gas; processing crude oil into refined oil products; producing, trading, transporting, distributing and marketing refined oil products; and producing and distributing chemical products. China Petrochemical Corporation is one of the largest crude oil and petrochemical companies in China and Asia. It is also one of the largest gasoline, kerosene, diesel, lubricants and other major chemical products producers and distributors in China and Asia. For additional information about Sinopec Group, please visit www.sinopecgroup.com.
Founded on December 28, 2005, the Sinopec Assets Management Corporation is a wholly-owned subsidiary of China Petrochemical Corporation (Sinopec Group). It operates in parallel and independently with China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation (Sinopec, HKEX: 386; NYSE: SNP; LSE: SNP; CH: 600028) and other specialty subsidiary companies of the Sinopec Group. It collaborates with and is complementary to China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation for the optimized industrial structure.
