(ICIS) -- INEOS has been offered $1bn (┬740m) by PetroChina for a 50% share in its European refining operation, it said on Monday. The business includes the refineries at Grangemouth in Scotland and Lavera in France.
The partnership with PetroChina, for which a framework agreement was entered on 10 January 2011, would comprise a trading joint venture (JV) and a refining JV, INEOS added.
Core to INEOS was an agreement signed with PetroChina's ultimate parent company, China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) to share refining and petrochemical technology and expertise. The agreement gives INEOS the opportunity to lever its technology and expertise into the China market.
In addition, the JV would aid PetroChina's strategy of building a broader business platform in Europe and of becoming a leading international energy company, INEOS said.
INEOS and PetroChina would now work towards forming the proposed JVs in the second quarter of 2011.