China PDH capacity expansion further boosts propane imports

It was learned on October 29 that, Sinochem International C3 Project (Phase I)'s 600,000 t/y PDH plant has been put into trial operation recently and is expected to yield qualified products in early November. This marks the completion of Sinochem International's epoxy resin integrated facility in Lianyungang.

After the PDH plant is put into operation, China's total PDH production capacity has reached 17.32 million t/y, with East China accounting for 46%.

Separately, there have been a total of 4.25 million t/y of PDH capacities coming on stream year-to-date, mainly distributed in South China, East China, and Shandong, which results in a significant increase in propane demand. OilChem expects that the total propane demand from PDH plants will be around 12.99 million tonnes in 2023, an increase of 3.3 million tonnes or 34% compared to 2022.

Additionally, Ningbo Formosa Plastics' propane imports have arrived in H2 October, and another batch of cargo was said to arrive in November to prepare for the operation of its PDH plant.

Therefore, in view of the commissioning of PDH plants amidst lack of domestically-produced feedstock, propane imports are projected to grow further to 33 million tonnes in 2023, with 40% of cargoes flowing into the PDH section.

Operation Time of PDH Plants

Source: OilChem

China PDH Capacity Distribution

Source: OilChem

Written by Sunny Fang, fss@oilchem.net  
Edited by Aggie Hu, huchenying@mysteel.com