China refiner Yanchang buys crude from UAE, Kazakhstan, instead of Russia, trade sources say

China’s Yanchang Petroleum has bought 3 million barrels of crude from the United Arab Emirates and Kazakhstan for January delivery, several trade sources said, after halting Russian oil purchases over concerns about Western sanctions. The state-owned refiner purchased 2 million barrels of Abu Dhabi’s Murban crude from Mercuria and 1 million barrels of CPC Blend from Vitol, the sources said on Tuesday. Pricing details were not immediately available. Yanchang last week issued a tender seeking non-Russian crude for delivery between December and mid-February. The refiner, backed by the Shaanxi provincial government and located in the landlocked north, has a processing capacity of 348,000 barrels per day. It follows other Chinese state-owned majors, including Sinopec, which suspended Russian crude purchases in October after new Western sanctions targeting leading Russian oil producers.