China has commenced efforts to commission 10 M tonnes/y of oil refining and petrochemical production facilities, including an ethylene production of 1 M tonnes/y, and consolidate these operations into refining/petrochemical complexes. This goal is part of a medium term strategy for oil refining and ethylene manufacturing that is included under the countrys current 11th Five-Year Plan. One example of this project is that of Sinopec Maoming, which increased its ethylene output capacity to 1 M tonnes/y.
The country's ethylene output is expected to top about 18 M tonnes/y in 2010. The companies that are set to conclude their respective 1 M tonne/y or more expansion by 2010 include Sinopec Yanshan, Secco, Sinopec Zhenhai, and subsidiaries of China National Petroleum Corp namely, CNPC Daqing, CNPC Lanzhou and CNPC Dushanzi. In addition, the central government has approved Sinopec's plan to build a 0.8 M tonne/y plant in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. In early 2007, CNPC disclosed plans to build a 1.2 M tonne/y plant in Daqing, Heilongjiang Province, China, and 1 M tonne/y plant in Yanan, Shaanxi Province, China. Newly built and expanded plants in the Middle East and Southeast Asia will also add to the supply in 2009. Paraxylene output is on the rise, with a chain of expansions slated for implementation in late 2008 and 2009.
These include Sinopec's plan to build a 600,000 tonne/y paraxylene (PX) plant in Jinling, Jiangsu Province and China National Offshore Oil Corps plan to set up an 840,000 tonne/y plant in Huizhou, Guandong Province. China's purified terephthalate acid (PTA) production capacity is expected to reach 10 M tonnes/y by the end of 2007. Domestic PTA demand is estimated at 16 M tonnes/y, which will affect imports. PVC production is projected to hit 800,000 tonnes in 2007, with low-end grades going to India, Turkey and the Middle East. China is also trying to lure foreign investments for derivative production. Bayer AG is building an isocyanate complex for the production of polycarbonate resins and diphenylmethane diisocyanate (MDI). Dow Chemical also plans to establish production plants for epoxy resins and epichlorohydrin. These projects are located at the Shanghai Chemical Industrial Park. BASF AG, Huntsman Corp and Lucite International are also locating their production bases in the country. A |
