China National Petroleum appointing new head of trading arm as Wang Lihua retires

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Labourers work at a well head in a PetroChina oil field in Tongnan, southwest China's Sichuan province. China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC) will be naming a new global trading arm chief to take the place of the veteran Wang Lihua, who is retiring shortly. Photo: Reuters

Published: 7:29am, 20 Apr 2017

China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC) will install its domestic fuel sales chief to head the state-owned oil giant’s trading arm, succeeding Wang Lihua who is retiring after two decades guiding one of the world’s top oil merchants, sources said.

Tian Jinghui, a vice president at PetroChina, CNPC’s listed subsidiary, and a veteran of its fuel marketing business, will be appointed chairman of CNPC’s trading unit China National United Oil Corp, or Chinaoil, three sources briefed on the matter said. This is the first major management reshuffle in Chinaoil’s 24-year history.

It is one of the most influential roles in the fiercely competitive global oil trading business, with a portfolio that spans a nearly 3,000-strong workforce, trading teams in oil hubs from Singapore to London to Houston, stakes in refineries in Asia and Europe, and storage in the Caribbean.

A PetroChina press official confirmed Wang’s retirement but declined to comment on her replacement. The sources did not want to be named as the reshuffle has not been made public.

An internal announcement was issued last week, the sources said. It is not clear when the official handover will take place.

Employees of China National Petroleum Corporation carry out routine checks at a gas refinery in Suining, Sichuan province. CNPC is naming a new chief of its global trading arm. Photo: Reuters

One of the sources briefed on the matter said Tian will keep his current role as PetroChina marketing head after taking up the Chinaoil position.