Ethylene project to deliver benefits

China has marked a major milestone in its petrochemical industry with the full commercial operation of the country's first full-chain green and low-carbon ethylene project in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, said its operator China National Petroleum Corp.

The landmark facility not only elevates the company's total ethylene capacity to over 12 million metric tons per year, but also pioneers a sustainable transformation path that reshapes the traditionally high-emission sector while balancing the nation's regional industrial layout, it said.

Located in the southern part of Xinjiang, the Tarim 1.2-million-ton second-phase ethylene and green demonstration project has demonstrated exceptional operational stability since its initial startup in July. To date, the facility has produced over 260,000 tons of ethylene and supplied 566,000 tons of high-quality chemicals. Key downstream outputs are already being exported to markets in Central Asia, highlighting the project's robust commercial viability.

A standout feature of the project is its near-total reliance on domestic technological innovation. Of the 11 major production units, 10 utilize independent domestic technologies, achieving an overall localization rate of 99 percent and proving the reliability of China's core petrochemical equipment on an industrial scale, said CNPC.

Crucially, the facility establishes a closed-loop technological system integrating green electricity, carbon capture, blue hydrogen, blue ammonia and green fertilizers. It features the world's first demonstration base for recycling carbon dioxide emissions directly from ethylene cracking furnaces.

"As the country's first full-chain green and low-carbon ethylene demonstration project, it plays a vital role in implementing the national dual-carbon strategy and driving the green transformation of the traditional petrochemical industry," said Jin Yong, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and a professor at Tsinghua University.

"It effectively solves industry pain points by building a full-chain low-carbon development system while securing supply capabilities. This achieves simultaneous capacity upgrades and carbon reduction, fundamentally reshaping the traditional development logic of energy-intensive industries."

Often referred to as the "mother of the petrochemical industry", ethylene production is a key barometer of a country's manufacturing prowess.

Historically, China's ethylene capacity has been heavily concentrated in eastern coastal areas. The operation of the Tarim facility effectively rebalances this regional disparity, shifting the east-heavy layout and strengthening the resilience of the national supply chain.

The economic ripple effects are expected to be substantial. The project will generate 1.45 million tons of rubber and plastic products annually, filling a critical gap in the high-end polyolefin and synthetic rubber new materials market.

It is estimated that it will drive the creation of an industry cluster, boosting local GDP.

Looking ahead, CNPC Dushanzi Petrochemical aims to leverage this autonomous production capacity to streamline the mass production of new materials.

According to Wang Shengwei, executive director of the company, the facility will provide stable, low-cost raw materials for cutting-edge research, accelerating industrialization and cementing the region's status as a high-end chemical innovation hub. This will provide stable and low-cost raw material support for the research and development, pilot testing and industrialization of cutting-edge new materials.