In a dramatic reversal of fortunes, Beijing has announced huge cutbacks in import quotas for the country’s private oil refiners. According to Reuters, China’s independent refiners have been awarded a combined 35.24 million tons in crude oil import quotas in the second batch of quotas this year, a 35% reduction from 53.88 million tons for a similar tranche a year ago. The big reduction has come as part of a government crackdown on private Chinese refiners known as teapots, who have become increasingly dominant over the past five years. This is intended to allow Beijing to more precisely regulate the flow of foreign oil as it doubles down on malpractices such as tax evasion, fuel smuggling, and violations of environmental and emissions rules by independent refiners. The move is also intended to claw back control of China’s crude refining sector from private refiners to state-owned refineries. And it’s reminiscent […]