Sinopec Zhejiang's Zhoushan Ethylene Project Starts Construction

July 19, 2017, Sinopec Zhejiang Company initiated the ethylene project 1,400kt/a ethylene cracker construction at Zhoushan Green Petroleum Base. The cracker was built by Wison Group, and was the largest single set of cracker in China and the world. The integrated refining & chemical project at Zhoushan was designed for 40,000kt/a of refining capacity, 8,000kt/a of p-xylene capacity and 2,800kt/a of ethylene capacity, and was planned to build in two phases.

At the same time, another four integrated refining & chemical projects also had ethylene projects under construction or in plans, such as the 1,000kt/a ethylene capacity expansion at Sinochem Quanzhou Petrochemical, three newly-added ethylene units with 1,000kt/a capacity each at Shenghong Petrochemical Industrial Park, Sinopec-KPC Zhanjiang Project and Henan Puyang Chemical Base.

The 5000kt/a ethylene capacity will bring great support to the naphtha and LPG market in China. China is deficient in oil and gas, and the ethylene feedstock in China is mainly the naphtha and LPG. Although the LPG provides more alkene yields in cracking, naphtha is still the major feedstock due to its high-value by-products such as aromatics.

Currently in Shandong, the naphtha dealing price was RMB 3,700-3,850/mt, and the LPG dealing price was RMB 3,150-3,250/mt. Refiners used naphtha as main feedstock and mixed LPG in. The upcoming great demand expansion will definitely bring great opportunity to the naphtha and LPG production and import in China. The LPG surplus will be alleviated, and the civil-use LPG to industrial-use LPG transformation will be accelerated.