China will enter the peak of ethylene expansion

Business Club November 23 News November 22, Sinopec Economic and Technical Research Institute experts in the second session of the coal-to-olefins technology economics seminar said that the period of 2010-2012 is the peak period of ethylene expansion in China. From 2010 to 2015, Sinopec will add nearly 4.57 million tons of ethylene per year, and China's oil will add 2.26 million tons per year, while other companies will increase 2.89 million tons per year.

The expert said that from 2009 to 2015, China will build and expand 11-13 new ethylene projects, including 7 new construction projects and 5 expansion projects. Among these projects, there are 7 Sinopec projects with an aggregate capacity of 4.93 million tons/year and PetroChina 3 projects with a capacity of 2.4 million.

He said that from 2010 to 2015, the growth rate of ethylene demand in China will maintain a certain growth rate. It is estimated that the growth rate will be around 5% in 2010-2012, and the growth rate will be around 5-7% in 2013-2015. It is estimated that by 2015 China's ethylene equivalent consumption exceeds 35 million tons.

In 2009, China produced 10.742 million tons of ethylene, of which Sinopec produced 6.713 million tons, accounting for approximately 62.5% of domestic production. China's oil production was 2.989 million tons, accounting for 27.8% of domestic production.

In recent years, domestic ethylene imports have increased significantly. In 2009, domestic imports of ethylene were 97.5 million tons and exports of ethylene were 15,000 tons. At present, some enterprises in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Bohai Bay have begun to use imported ethylene to develop downstream ethylene production.

Industry insiders expect that by 2015, China's coal-to-oil production capacity will reach 12 million tons/year, coal-to-olefin production capacity will exceed 5 million tons, and coal-to-natural gas production capacity will exceed 20 billion cubic meters. The modern coal chemical industry has achieved the “fifth” oil and gas channel through the clean and efficient conversion of coal, complementing and partially replacing oil and gas resources.