Fire at Sinopec Shanghai Petchem Plant Kills One

This aerial photo taken on June 18, 2022 shows a large fire at a Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical plant in outlying Jinshan district of Shanghai. (AFP)
This aerial photo taken on June 18, 2022 shows a large fire at a Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical plant in outlying Jinshan district of Shanghai. (AFP)
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Fire at Sinopec Shanghai Petchem Plant Kills One

This aerial photo taken on June 18, 2022 shows a large fire at a Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical plant in outlying Jinshan district of Shanghai. (AFP)
This aerial photo taken on June 18, 2022 shows a large fire at a Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical plant in outlying Jinshan district of Shanghai. (AFP)

A fire broke out at a Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical Co Ltd plant in Shanghai early on Saturday, killing one person, the company said.

Roaring fire was seen engulfing part of a sprawling factory, emitting columns of thick black smoke, in a video posted on Twitter by the state-backed Shanghai Daily.

The fire at one of China's biggest refining and petrochemicals plants started around 4 a.m. (2000 GMT on Friday) and had been brought under control by 9 a.m. but "was difficult to handle", state media Xinhua reported, citing fire officials.

It was expected to continue burning for some time.

The driver of a third-party transport vehicle died and a company employee suffered a minor injury, said a Sinopec representative.

He said the fire affected the ethylene glycol facility at the plant in Jinshan, a southwestern suburb of China's financial capital.

State-owned Sinopec said on its official Weibo account it was monitoring volatile organic compounds and impact to rainwater outlets, and no impact on the surrounding water environment had been found.

Sinopec Shanghai has processing capacity for 16 million tons of crude oil a year and 700,000 tons of ethylene, according to its website.

It is building a 3.5 billion yuan ($520 million) carbon fiber project as it seeks to diversify away from refining, and focus on resin and fibers.



Military Confrontation Seems Inevitable If No New Iran Nuclear Deal, France Says

 France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot speaks during the Forum d'affaires Franco-Chinois in Shanghai on March 28, 2025. (AFP)
France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot speaks during the Forum d'affaires Franco-Chinois in Shanghai on March 28, 2025. (AFP)
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Military Confrontation Seems Inevitable If No New Iran Nuclear Deal, France Says

 France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot speaks during the Forum d'affaires Franco-Chinois in Shanghai on March 28, 2025. (AFP)
France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot speaks during the Forum d'affaires Franco-Chinois in Shanghai on March 28, 2025. (AFP)

The window to reach a new deal to curb Iran's nuclear program is narrow and if it is not achieved then a military confrontation seems "almost inevitable", French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Wednesday.

"We only have a few months until the expiration of this (2015) accord," he told a parliamentary hearing. "In case of failure, a military confrontation would seem to be almost inevitable."

Barrot added that new European Union sanctions on Tehran linked to the detention of foreign citizens in Iran would also be approved in the coming weeks.