Kuwait Chooses Total as Partner in $9 Billion China Refinery

Kuwait chose Total SA as the third partner to build a $9 billion oil refinery in China, the head of Kuwait Petroleum Corp. said, as the Gulf state seeks a foothold in Asia’s biggest consumer of refined products.

“We are negotiating now with Total, and hopefully we will reach an agreement based on a memorandum of understanding,” Chief Executive Officer Farouk Al-Zanki said in a telephone interview today from Kuwait City. “We’d like to sign it in February.”