BEIJING - The China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (Sinopec) said on Monday that it has signed a framework agreement with Australia Pacific Liquefied Natural Gas (APLNG) to increase its equity interest in the company from 15 percent to 25 percent.

The overweight leaves Australia's Origin Energy and US energy giant ConocoPhillips, two of APLNG's other joint venture partners, with 37.5 percent interest each.

Sinopec will also increase its purchase of liquefied natural gas (LNG) by 3.3 million tons to 7.6 million tons annually until 2035, according to the agreement.

Fu Chengyu, chairman of Sinopec, said the agreement will further meet the growing energy demands of China and Sinopec and provide more clean energy for Chinese consumers.

Jim Mulva, CEO of ConocoPhillips and Kevin McCann, chairman of Origin Energy, said they both regard the agreement as "major progress" for APLNG and its project.

APLNG now provides 40 percent of Queensland's demand for natural gas and its project creates thousands of job opportunities and benefits for local and neighboring communities.

In April 2011, Sinopec inked an agreement with APLNG for 4.3 million tons of LNG annually for 20 years starting from mid-2015, and for a 15 percent stake in APLNG.