Gazprom Neft has become the first Russian oil company to refuel Aeroflot’s regular flights in China, air company reports. Under a respective agreement, Gazpromneft-Aero, the aviation-fuel business operator of Gazprom Neft, will be supplying the airline’s flights with aviation fuel at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport. The annual volume of refueling will amount approximately to 20,000 tons.
Gazpromneft-Aero has already carried out “wing-tip” refueling of Russian and international airlines in China’s 22 largest airports under an agreement with the China National Aviation Fuel Group Corporation (CNAF) on network jet fuel supply. Gazpromneft-Aero’s retail sales of jet fuel in China through CNAF’s infrastructure rose by 70% to 21,000 tons by the 2018 yearend. Gazpromneft-Aero’s strategy is to further expand its international airport network, thus ensuring air carriers’ timely refueling and the highest level of service.
“Our aggregate international jet fuel sales to Aeroflot exceeded 90,000 tons. We expect this new agreement with our strategic partner to double the sales volume in China by the yearend. Gazpromneft-Aero sees great potential in the Asia-Pacific market, primarily in China, due to the growth of tourist flows between our countries. Thanks to our cooperation with CNAF, we have built our largest international distribution network in China. We look forward to expanding our cooperation with airports in China and other Asia-Pacific countries, strengthening our foothold in the region and increasing the volume and geographic reach of our fueling operations,” Vladimir Yegorov, CEO of Gazpromneft-Aero, said.