China’s Zhejiang Rongsheng plans CNY160bn refinery-petchem complex

Fanny Zhang

14-Sep-2016

Zhoushan (Google map) 14 September 2016

SINGAPORE (ICIS)–China’s Zhejiang Rongsheng is building a joint venture refinery-petrochemical complex in Zhoushan, with the first phase due to start up in late 2018, sources familiar with the project said.

The yuan (CNY) 160bn ($24bn) project, which will be built in two phases in China’s eastern Zhejiang province, is expected to have an overall refining capacity of 40m tonnes/year or 800,000 bbl/day, according to preliminary environmental impact assessment (EIA) report published recently on Zhoushan’s local government website.

It will have an ethylene capacity of 2.8m tonnes/year, with aromatics production estimated at 10.4m tonnes/year, and will include a propane dehydrogenation (PDH) unit with a total capacity of 1.2m tonnes/year.

The complex will produce a host of downstream products such as polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), ethylene oxide/ethylene glycol (EO/EG), ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA), styrene, butadiene (BD), methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE)/butylene 1, phenol, acetone, bisphenol A (BPA), polycarbonate, acrylonitrile (ACN) and methyl methacrylate (MMA). (Please see table of capacities below)

Construction remains at an early stage, the sources said.

Zhejiang Rongsheng is in talks with prospective partners Tongkun Group and Juhua Group to each take up a 25% equity stake each in the project, a Tongkun source said.

At least 50% of the project will be kept by Hangzhou-based Zhejiang Rongsheng – which produces purified terephthalic acid (PTA), polyester fibre and other related products.

There were initial market talks that China’s state-owned petrochemical giant Sinopec but may no longer be part of the project, market sources said.

The whole Zhoushan refinery and petrochemical complex is expected to be completed in four years, with the second phase due to begin operations in 2020, the source at Tongkun Group said.

Tongkun Group is engaged in the manufacture of polyester and polyster filament yarn, while Juhua Group is based on Quzhou produces flourochemicals, chlor-alkali chemicals, petrochemicals, coal chemicals, fertilizers and pesticides, as well as pharmaceuticals, according to its website.

Capacity

1st phase (tonnes/yr)

2nd phase (tonnes/year)

Refining 

400,000 bbl/day

400,000 bbl/day

Aromatics

5.2m

5.2m

Ethylene 

1.4m

1.4m

PDH

600,000

600,000

FDPE

450,000

450,000

HDPE

300,000

/

EO/EG

50,000/750,000

100,000/650,000

EVA/LDPE

/

100,000/300,000

Styrene

1.2m

600,000

PP

900,000

900,000

butadiene

200,000

200,000

MTBE/butylene-1

100,000/50,000

/

Phenol

400,000

/

Acetone

250,000

/

BPA

230,000

230,000

PC

260,000

260,000

Acrylonitrile

260,000

/

MMA

90,000

/

Source: Environmental impact assessment report available on Zhoushan government website

By Sophia Ma and Fanny Zhang

Additional reporting by Pearl Bantillo

($1 = CNY6.68)

Photo: Zhoushan, Zhejiang province in eastern China (Source: Google Maps)

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