Robert Brelsford
Downstream Technology Editor
Royal Dutch Shell PLC subsidiary Shell Nanhai BV and China National Offshore Oil Corp.’s 50-50 joint venture CNOOC & Shell Petrochemicals Co. Ltd. (CSPC) has commissioned a second ethylene cracker at its existing petrochemical complex in the Daya Bay Economic & Technological Development Zone, Huizhou, Guangdong Province, China (OGJ Online, Dec. 15, 2015).
Alongside the 1.2 million-tonne/year ethylene cracker, CSPC has started up several associated derivative units, with remaining units scheduled for commissioning progressively over the next few weeks, Shell said.
CNOOC & Shell Petrochemicals Co. Ltd. has commissioned a second ethylene cracker at its existing petrochemical complex in the Daya Bay Economic & Technological Development Zone, Huizhou, Guangdong Province, China. Photo from CNOOC & Shell Petrochemicals.
Built by CNOOC, these new units—which include what will be China’s largest styrene monomer and propylene oxide (SMPO) plant on startup—will more than double capacity of the complex, benefitting from a deep integration with adjacent CNOOC refineries.
Alongside its increased production of ethylene, the expanded complex will use Shell’s proprietary OMEGA, SMPO, and Polyols technologies to produce the following: ethylene oxide, 150,000 tpy; ethylene glycol, 480,000 tpy; styrene monomer, 630,000 tpy; propylene oxide, 300,000 tpy; and high-quality polyols, 600,000 tpy (OGJ Online, Nov. 2, 2016).
Once fully commissioned, the expansion project will more than double the volume and range of products at CSPC’s Nanhai complex, which currently produces the following: ethylene, 950,000 tpy; propylene, 500,000 tpy; butadiene, 165,000 tpy; low-density polyethylene, 250,000 tpy; high-density polyethylene, 260,000 tpy; polypropylene, 260,000 tpy; monoethylene glycol, 350,000 tpy; styrene monomer, 640,000 tpy; propylene oxide, 290,000 tpy; polyols, 170,000 tpy; and propylene glycol, 60,000 tpy.
