China’s state refiners Sinopec is expanding petrochemical production at its Anqing refinery in Anhui province. The project is part of the company’s plans to strengthen its downstream sector further. After the completion, the facility’s refined product output will be lowered by a third, with gasoline production rising at the expense of diesel.
The expansion project consists of two phases. The CNY6.6 billion ($933 million) first phase will add 2mn tons/year of olefins and aromatics capacities, including 150,000 tons/year of ethylene, 640,000 tons/year of propylene and 610,000 tons/year of aromatics products. Meanwhile, the CNY4.4 billion ($622 million) second phase will add another 650,000 tons/year of unspecified chemical production. The trial production for first-phase units is expected in late 2022.
Anqing will permanently shut its 1.4mn tons/year fluid catalytic cracker and 700,000 tons/year deep catalytic cracking unit for environmental reasons due to their proximity to residential areas. Under the project, the refinery will have a new 3mn t/y deep catalytic cracking unit to produce crude with 1.5% sulfur content.
Anqing currently produces 30,000 tons/year of polypropylene, 100,000 tons/year of ethylbenzene, 100,000 tons/year of styrene, and 210,000 tons/year of acrylonitrile. The upgrading project will also expand the output of these products. In late 2016, Sinopec commissioned an 88,000 bpd oil products pipeline, connecting the refinery to Hefei, Huainan, Bengbu, and Fuyang. The project will also expand this pipeline to replace product shipments by river.
