Kuwait Petroleum Corp. hopes an international oil company will take 20 per cent of its stake in a $9-billion joint venture project in China soon, KPC's chief executive said.

KPC and Chinese refiner Sinopec Corp are equal partners in a project to build a 300,000 barrel per day (bpd) refinery and 1 million tonne-per-year ethylene complex in the southern city of Zhanjiang.

In 2009, KPC courted potential investors Royal Dutch Shell and US-based Dow Chemical to help fund the project but neither joined up.

The state-run Kuwaiti firm hopes an international oil company will commit to its Chinese joint venture soon and plans to grow its fuel retail business in China.

'The partnership with one of the international oil companies will enable KPC to reduce financial risk in addition to gaining international experience,' Farouk al-Zanki was quoted by Kuwait state news agency KUNA as saying on Sunday during a visit to China.

'KPC is seeking a bigger share of retail rights and private ownership, especially in gasoline stations, to ensure satisfactory economic return from the project.'

Kuwait, one of the world's leading oil producers, aims to increase its production from around 2.6 million to 4 million bpd by 2020, while doubling its exports to China to 500,000 bpd.

Kuwait exported around 1.7 million bpd in July, mostly to Asia.

The refinery complex in Guangdong province is expected to start operations around 2013/14. – Reuters