The state-owned oil and gas company, China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), is expected to sign an agreement with Adnoc to invest in oil and gas exploration and refinery projects, according to a Reuters report that cited anonymous sources.

Under current plans, the agreement will be signed during a Chinese state visit to the UAE later in July.

CNPC Chairman Wang Yilin will be in the UAE as part of the business delegation.

“It will be a preliminary and broad cooperation deal that covers upstream and downstream investment,” one source told Reuters.

Ministers from all 22 Arab League states, including isolated Qatar, will meet in Beijing on 10 July for a China-Arab summit.

President Xi Jinping is due to deliver the keynote speech.

In March, Adnoc awarded China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) stakes in two of the emirate’s new offshore oil concessions.

CNPC was awarded a 10 per cent in the Umm Shaif and Nasr concession and a 10 per cent interest in the Lower Zakum concession.

CNPC paid a total participation fee of AED4.3bn ($1.2bn), with AED2.1bn provided for the Umm Shaif and Nasr concession and AED2.2bn for the Lower Zakum deposit.