CNOOC plans petrochem,offshore facilities in Fujian-official

BEIJING May 27 (Reuters) - China National Offshore Oil Corp (CNOOC) is drawing up preliminary plans to build petrochemical plants and offshore engineering facilities in coastal Fujian province, a company official said on Wednesday.

The state-run company, parent of offshore oil and gas producer CNOOC Ltd (0883.HK), is expanding aggressively into the refining and petrochemical business.

It already operates an 800,000-tonne-per-year ethylene complex in southern Guangdong province, where in March it also started its first major refinery of 240,000 barrels per day.

A local newspaper on Tuesday reported that CNOOC was looking to set up a large petrochemical base and commercial reserves of both crude and petroleum products in Ningde, Fujian province. The company also runs a liquefied natural gas terminal there.

"We are in the early stages of planning for the Ningde Sanduao industrial park and have set up a company dedicated to the development of the park," said a CNOOC media officer who declined to be named.

He denied that CNOOC had plans to establish petroleum reserves there, he said.

"It could be a local government idea to drum up state investment," the official said.

He said CNOOC wanted to build petrochemical plants and offshore engineering works such as drilling rigs, without elaborating.

(Reporting by Chen Aizhu; editing by Chris Lewis)