Dongming Petrochemical, an independent Chinese refiner, said it has halted crude purchases from the US and turned to Iranian imports amid escalating trade tensions between Beijing and Washington.
Dongming Petrochemical has nearly 6,300 employees, total assets of 30 billion yuan ($4.5 billion) and the primary processing capacity is 15 million tons per year, according to the company website.
Chinese authorities are reportedly planning to impose tariffs on US crude imports and replace them with oil from West Africa and the Middle East, including Iran. Beijing said it was not going to fall into line with US sanctions banning business with the Islamic republic.