| Nanjing Petrochemical project | |
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| The Yangtze-BASF Integrated Petrochemical Site Project (IPS) is
currently one of the largest international joint venture projects
to get underway in China. The project was approved by the Chinese
government in February 1998 and the joint venture contract, between
China's Sinopec Corporation and Germany's BASF, was signed in Berlin
on June 30th 2000.Situated in the economically developed Nanjing area
in Jiangsu Province the project will involve the construction of a
major petrochemical facility capable of producing 1.77 million tons
of petrochemical products after completion in 2004.
The plant will be jointly built by Sinopec Corp and BASF. The total investment involved will amount to US$ 2.65 billion. The two companies have set up a 50:50 joint venture company: the BASF - YPC Company Limited, based in Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, China. The project will be integrated with the existing Yangtze Petrochemical facilities. The project will incorporate a 600,000 tpa ethylene cracker at its core and will use naptha as feedstock to produce a range of petrochemical products for which there is a high demand in the domestic market. There will be nine processing streams capable of producing the following products in varying quantities, but up to:300,000-tpa aromatics extraction, 300,000-tpa ethylene glycol, 400,000-tpa low density polyethylene (LDPE), 250,000-tpa oxo-alcohol, 160,000-tpa acrylic acid, 215,000-tpa acrylic ester, 50,000-tpa formic acid, 30,000-tpa aminomethane, 30,000-tpa propionic acid, and 30,000-tpa dimethylformamide (DMF). In addition, an independent utilities centre will be built and operated by a third party. This centre will use cheap, high-sulphur coal as fuel, and will adopt advanced integral coal gasification technology, and steam and gas turbine combined-cycle technology to supply power, steam and process air, as well as feedstock to the processing units. The overall project combines petrochemical and coal chemical processes to produce a mix of polyolefins, polyester raw materials and fine chemicals that meet market demand. When completed, the annual output of 1.77 million tons of products, will substantially reduce current imports. By introducing a third party and integrating the new plant with the existing infrastructure and facilities of Yangtze Petrochemical, the project will save capital cost and mitigate capital risks. Situated in the economically developed Nanjing area, the project will promote the restructuring of local industries and the development of downstream processing industries. In compliance with Sinopec's development strategy the joint venture partners have adopted world class technologies to minimize the consumption of natural resources and energy, and to maximize the protection of the environment. The project is planned to be completed and in operation by the end of 2004. |
