Zhongyuan Dahua took the lead in switching from gas to coal for urea production” 　

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Providing innovative solutions to overcome the challenge of high gas prices. “The construction of the company’s project to switch from gas to coal is now in its final stages. This winter, syngas produced from coal can be used to partially replace natural gas as a raw material for urea production, thereby reducing the pressure associated with rising urea costs.” ”On November 13, Guo Hongjian, head of the Party Committee Work Department of Henan Zhongyuan Dahuahua Group Co., Ltd., explained. 　　It is understood that among fertilizer manufacturers that rely on natural gas, Zhongyuan Dahuahua was the first to carry out structural optimization by using coal-based syngas produced from the company’s coal chemical methanol plant as a substitute for natural gas as a raw material for urea production. This approach provides an innovative solution for such companies to overcome the challenges posed by high gas prices. 　　The predecessor of Zhongyuan Dahuahua was the Henan Province Zhongyuan Fertilizer Factory, which used natural gas as raw material to produce 300,000 tons of synthetic ammonia and 520,000 tons of urea per year. After its completion and commissioning in 1990, it put an end to the history of Henan Province having no large-scale fertilizer production facilities; it was the first facility to use the high-pressure ammonia stripping process for urea production, steering China’s fertilizer manufacturing industry in the direction of energy efficiency and environmental protection. 　　As a supporting project of the Zhongyuan Oil Field, Zhongyuan Dahua enjoyed a unique advantage from the very beginning of its construction: it could use natural gas supplied directly through pipelines originating from the Zhongyuan Oil Field. This supply model features short distances and relatively low costs, serving as the \"lifeline\" to ensure its basic production and survival. However, as the exploitation period of the Zhongyuan oil field lengthens, natural gas production gradually declines, and relying solely on this oil field to supply gas can no longer meet all of Zhongyuan Dahua’s gas needs, especially those associated with capacity expansion and new projects. 　　In recent years, in order to overcome the limitations of relying on a single gas source and improve supply security, through extensive coordination, the gas sources used by Zhongyuan Dahua have gradually become more diversified. Apart from a small amount of gas supplied by the Zhongyuan oil field, natural gas and shale gas from regions such as Shaanxi, Shanxi, and Inner Mongolia are used as supplementary gas sources through the **main pipeline network. 　　Although the raw gas comes from various sources, it is all high-priced natural gas purchased from the market, which indirectly increases the production costs of Zhongyuan Da Hua. In recent years, it has become common for the company’s comprehensive gas price to exceed 3 yuan per cubic meter, forcing businesses to bear the burden of high costs. The ongoing downturn in the urea market has further exacerbated the operational difficulties faced by Zhongyuan Dahuahua. 　　“Against this backdrop, Zhongyuan Dahua carried out a project to optimize and upgrade the raw material supply route for fertilizer production. By linking the gasification gas used in coal chemical processes with the ammonia and urea production facilities in natural gas-based chemical processes, it became possible to switch between different products freely, thereby improving the company’s economic efficiency and enhancing its product competitiveness as well as its resilience to risks. ”Guo Hongjian, head of the Party Committee Work Department at Zhongyuan Dahua, said. 　　Currently, not only Zhongyuan Dahuahua, but also the fertilizer manufacturers in the southwest region, known for their abundant gas supply, are facing the dilemma of rising gas prices and falling fertilizer prices. It is reported that, with the exception of a very small number of urea-producing companies that use natural gas as a feedstock such as CNOOC Hainan Large Fertilizer, the capacity utilization rate for urea production using natural gas across the country has been around 75% in the past two years, which is far lower than the level achieved by those using coal as a feedstock. Urea-producing companies that rely on natural gas need to optimize and reform their raw material sourcing strategies urgently. Breaking the deadlock requires proactive innovation. Faced with the challenge of high fertilizer prices, proactive innovation is the only way for fertilizer companies to survive and thrive. 　　This innovation can be manifested in the diversification of raw material sources; for example, Zhongyuan Dahuo has optimized its raw material structure by using syngas produced from coal to partially replace natural gas as a raw material for urea production. It can also involve actively promoting technological innovation and implementing technical upgrades to reduce the amount of natural gas consumed per unit of product, thereby lowering raw material costs and enhancing resilience to high gas prices. 　　At the same time, such innovation can also promote the extension of the industrial chain, enabling it to develop in a “one end with multiple tails” direction. For example, synthetic ammonia and methanol can be utilized to develop high-value fine chemical products downstream, thereby increasing the added value of these products and their profitability, and thus helping to offset the costs associated with high gas prices. 　　In addition, urea manufacturers relying on gas can also pursue strategic transformation and integration to form larger energy and chemical groups, thereby enhancing their resilience to risks through internal resource allocation and the complementary use of coal and gas.