East China chem plants must shut/cut output ahead of G20 summit

SINGAPORE (ICIS)–Petrochemical plants in major cities in east China must reduce production or shut down from late August, about two weeks before the 2016 G20 summit at Hangzhou City in Zhejiang province, industry sources said on Friday.

The order came from the municipal governments of the cities, which include Shanghai and Ningbo, to ensure improved air quality for the duration of the summit, which will take place on 4-5 September.

Leaders of the G20 (Group of 20) member countries will convene in Hangzhou to discuss a host of issues facing the global economy, including climate change.

Hangzhou is home to major polyester producers, which are expected to implement the prescribed temporary measures to curb pollution until after the summit, market sources said.

For Shanghai, the production cuts and shutdowns will take effect from 24 August to 6 September, according to a document published on the Shanghai Environment Protection Bureau website.

Among the companies affected is Shanghai Petrochemical, which is required to reduce production by more than 50%, according to the document.

The company’s 150,000 tonne/year C5 separation unit; 100,000 tonne/year methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) unit; two 100,000 tonne/year polypropylene (PP) units; 230,000 tonne/year monoethylene glycol (MEG) plant; and 300,000 tonne/year polyester facility will be taken off line for 14 days from 24 August, based on the document.

Shanghai SECCO Petrochemical, meanwhile, will shut down one 260,000 tonne/year acrylonitrile (ACN) from mid-August, a company source said.

Other shutdowns include Huayi Polymer Co’s acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS), Shanghai Shanghai Chlor-Alkali Chemical’s ethylene dichloride (EDC) and Oriental Petrochemical Shanghai’s purified terephthalic acid (PTA) units ahead of G20 summit, the document said.

Other industries such as steel, coking and cement sectors in Shanghai are also being required to restrict production for a prescribed period, based on the document.

In Ningbo City, a number of industries were likewise given orders to help out in the efforts to reduce pollution in preparation for the G20 summit.

Cement, non-ferrous metal, chemical fibre companies are due to shut down their plants during the summit, while refining and chemical companies must reduce operation more than 50%, according an official statement obtained by ICIS.

“We have to build more feedstock and produce more products in June and July, before G20, as we still have to do sales in August and September,” said a downstream acrylamide producer in Ningbo.

Focus article by Judith Wang and Yeow Pei Lin

Additional reporting by Eric Su

Top image: Map of eastern China (Source: Google Map)