Germany's BASF says in MOU with China Sinopec to build steam cracker in Nanjing

BEIJING (Reuters) - German chemical giant BASF <BASFn.DE> said on Monday it has signed a memorandum of understanding with China's Sinopec Corp <600028.SS> to build a steam cracker with annual capacity of one million tonnes in the eastern Chinese city of Nanjing.

The German firm said a joint pre-feasibility study on the cracker will be concluded by end-2018.

Additionally, the companies will explore new business opportunities in China's fast-growing battery materials market, it said.

(Reporting by Chen Aizhu; editing by Richard Pullin)