Expansions: PetroChina to build petchem/refinery complex in Dalian; Sibur commences installation of PP line at Amur GСC
Chinese oil major PetroChina, the listed arm of state-owned China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), has made a final investment decision to build a new multi-billion-dollar refinery and petrochemical complex in northeast China's Dalian, in Changxing island, following recent closure of a nearby old plant, according to a report by Reuters.
It had earlier said PetroChina was on track to close the whole 410,000-bpd refinery in Dalian, which is operated by subsidiary Dalian Petrochemical Corp, part of the state oil major's long-mooted project to relocate and replace it with a smaller facility at a new site.
The mothballing of the old plant, PetroChina's largest domestic refinery in China, came amid refiners' struggle with overcapacity and weakened fuel demand from slowing economic growth and the electrification of the country's car fleet.
In other news, Sibur, Russia's largest polymer producer, has started installing a polypropylene (PP) production unit at the Amur Gas Chemical Complex (GСC), which is currently under construction in the country's Far East, close to Asian markets.
The Amur GCC, which is 60% owned by Sibur and 40% by China's Sinopec, is one of the largest investment projects in the global petrochemical industry, with a planned annual production capacity of 2.7 million tonnes of polymers. The construction is 80% completed, with production scheduled to begin next year.
In July, Sibur installed the first piece of equipment for PP production at the Amur GCC, a 20-tonne column responsible for purifying exhaust gas from solid PP particles. The equipment was delivered to the construction site via the Zeya River.
All deliveries of heavy and oversized equipment to the Amur GCC site are expected to be completed before the end of this year's summer navigation season.
Polyethylene (PE) production is planned to begin in 2026, followed by PP production in 2027. In addition to Russia, products will be exported to China and other Asian countries.
The Amur GCC is in the first quartile of the global cost curve, ensuring its competitiveness under any market conditions. The plant has a secure supply of Russian ethane and LPG, making it less vulnerable than its competitors to fluctuations in hydrocarbon feedstock prices.
The complex includes one PP production line with a capacity of 0.4 million tonnes/year, as well as four PE lines – three using gas-phase technology and one using slurry-phase technology – with a total combined capacity of 2.3 million tonnes/year.
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