The facility's 10 tanks, which have a total capacity of 6.3 million barrels, are operated by China National Petroleum Corp., the nation's top oil producer, and are located in the northwest Xinjiang region, the Xinhua news agency said.


This is just the first phase of the reserve, which will eventually have an overall capacity of more than 50 million barrels of crude, mainly produced in Xinjiang or imported from neighbouring Kazakhstan, it said.

Total investment in the project is 6.5 billion yuan (950 million dollars), with 856 million yuan invested in the first phase, it added.

Analysts said the ongoing slump in the global oil market, with crude prices falling 78 percent since hitting record highs above 147 dollars per barrel in July, made a good opening for China to expand its crude imports and reserves.