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US energy giant ExxonMobil has made a final investment decision on a multi-billion-dollar chemical complex in Guangdong province in southern China.
The greenfield project includes a 1.6m tonne/year flexible feed steam cracker, three performance polyethylene (PE) lines, and two differentiated performance polypropylene (PP) lines, ExxonMobil said late on Monday.
Construction is underway at the Dayawan Petrochemical Industrial Park in Huizhou, it said.
The cracker capacity was higher than the previously announced 1.2m tonnes/year in 2019.
The site will produce performance polymers used in packaging, automotive, agricultural, and consumer products for hygiene and personal care, mainly targeting Chinese domestic markets.
“Demand for performance polymers will continue to increase in China, and we’re well positioned to meet the needs of that growing market,” ExxonMobil Chemical president Karen McKee said.
ExxonMobil may mainly secure feedstock such as naphtha from imports, ICIS senior analyst Anita Yang said.
In 2019, the company had said that the project would have the capacity to produce 850,000 tonnes/year of linear low density PE (LLDPE); 500,000 tonnes/year of low density PE (LDPE); and 850,000 tonnes/year of PP.
The project, which was slated for start-up in 2023, had received approval from the Guangdong provincial government two years ago.
“ExxonMobil is prioritizing near-term capital investments on advantaged assets with the highest potential value and ability to generate attractive shareholder returns,” the company said.
“These include chemicals projects to grow high-value performance products by 60% by 2027,” it said.
In the US, its joint venture chemical complex in Corpus Christi, Texas with Saudi petrochemical major SABIC “is in the process of starting up”, ExxonMobil said.
