【2025 Industry Updates】Summary of the latest developments in domestic polyolefin elastomer (POE) projects

Thread Content

High-performance polyolefins are advanced materials developed on the basis of traditional polyolefins. Compared to ordinary polyolefins, high-end polyolefins have achieved significant advancements in molecular structure design, polymerization processes, and performance characteristics; they possess higher strength, toughness, heat resistance, chemical resistance, as well as improved optical properties. These outstanding properties endow high-end polyolefins with irreplaceable advantages in emerging industries, making them a key force driving industrial upgrading and innovative development. In recent years, many domestic enterprises have actively engaged in the drive for technological research and development and industrial upgrading. They have increased their investment in R&D, strengthened cooperation among industry, academia, and research institutions, and continued to pursue innovation, achieving significant breakthroughs in various key technology areas and gradually breaking the monopoly held by foreign companies. 1. Sinopec: As a leading enterprise in China’s petrochemical industry, Sinopec boasts strong technical capabilities and strategic planning skills in the field of high-end polyolefins. Significant progress has been made on several of its projects, laying a solid foundation for the development of China’s high-end polyolefin industry. The 100,000-ton POE and 100,000-ton ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene projects at Tianjin Nangang were successfully launched and put into operation on November 11, 2024, commencing full-scale production of high-end new materials. Among them, the 100,000 tons/year ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene plant represents a significant breakthrough in domestic independent intellectual property rights. In the production process, this device successfully addressed the issue of localizing core equipment; the slurry pump used is capable of handling materials with three phases – gas, liquid, and solid – at a solid content of up to 40% by weight, which effectively reduces costs and shortens the procurement time. Meanwhile, leveraging Sinopec’s new materials R&D center in Tianjin, the project combines its own technologies with Ineos’ technologies to produce a variety of high-end new materials, including medical-grade low-odor high-density polyethylene, high-performance metallocene linear low-density polyethylene, PE100+, POE, high-carbon α-olefins, and ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene. The 50,000 tons per year POE and raw material project at Maoming Petrochemical is also progressing steadily. On August 29, 2024, the 35 kV substation of Maoming Petrochemical’s 50,000 tons per year polyolefin elastomer (POE) pilot plant was successfully powered up, laying a solid foundation for the commissioning of the plant and the achievement of its mechanical completion goals. The main raw materials required for this project, such as ethylene, 1-octene, 1-butene, and hydrogen, are produced within the chemical plant complex, while catalysts, n-hexane, triisobutylaluminum, and other materials need to be purchased externally. The designed annual production capacity is 50,000 tons, of which the production capacity for 1-octene elastomer and 1-butene elastomer is 30,000 tons and 20,000 tons respectively. In addition, to ensure the supply of raw materials for the POE project, Maoming Petrochemical announced on March 7, 2024, that the environmental impact assessment report for a plant capable of producing 50,000 tons per year of 1-octene through the polymerization of ethylene had been completed. The total investment amount is 868 million yuan; utilizing technology from the Yanshan Branch of Beijing Institute of Chemical Technology, a new plant with an annual production capacity of 50,000 tons of 1-octene, along with associated storage and transportation systems and environmental protection facilities, will be built. The Zhenhai Refining & Chemicals project, which involves 1.5 million tons per year of ethylene production as well as the development of high-end new material industries, is also attracting a great deal of attention. In May 2023, the project was approved; it involves a steam cracking capacity of 1.5 million tons per year, as well as a range of downstream facilities for producing high-end new materials, including 800,000 tons per year of cracked gasoline hydrogenation, 500,000 tons per year of aromatic extraction, and 200,000 tons per year of butadiene extraction. In addition, a 180,000/60,000 tons per year methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE)/butene-1 plant, a 400,000 tons per year fully dense polyethylene plant, and a 2.2 million tons per year polyolefin elastomer (POE/α-olefin) complex plant will also be built. Currently, the polyolefin elastomer complex with an annual capacity of 2.2 million tons has been approved by the National Development and Reform Commission, and construction commenced officially on November 24, 2023. On October 21, 2024, the bidding for Phase 1 of the general contracting work for the civil construction of Sinopec Ningbo Zhenhai Refining & Chemical Co., Ltd.’s 100,000 tons per year polyolefin elastomer (POE) production facility was held. Sinopec Ningbo Engineering Co., Ltd. was the top bidder, with a bid price of 20,375,640 yuan. In addition, Sinopec has also achieved significant results in the research and development of high-end polyolefin materials such as acryloyl elastomers (PBE) and poly-1-butene (PB-1). On December 6, 2024, the first pilot-scale production facility for acrylate elastomers (PBE) in China at the Tianjin Scientific Testing Base of the Beijing Research Institute of Chemical Technology successfully completed the entire production process, achieving a successful first operation. This pilot plant utilizes the solution polymerization technology independently developed by Beihua Institute, along with catalysts also developed by the institute itself, to produce a series of new acrylate elastomer products. This demonstrates that Beihua Institute has successfully mastered the technology for producing acrylate elastomers based on single-center catalysts and the solution polymerization platform. On November 29, 2024, the pilot-scale polybutene-1 production unit at the Tianjin Science and Testing Base successfully completed the entire process, achieving a successful first operation. This pilot plant utilizes the liquid-phase bulk polymerization technology for olefins, which was independently developed by the Beijing Institute of Chemical Technology. By employing catalysts also developed internally, it produces a range of high-performance polyolefin materials based on polybutylene-1. This will continue to expand the application areas of polybutylene-1 products, providing strong support for ensuring self-sufficiency in key materials and enhancing market competitiveness. Polybutylene-1 (PB-1) is regarded as the \"gold among plastics\" due to its excellent physicochemical properties, and it is one of the most advanced chemical materials in the world today. 2. CNPC: CNPC has actively invested in the field of high-end polyolefins, and thanks to its strong technical R&D capabilities and extensive industry experience, it has achieved a series of remarkable results. On the morning of March 15, 2025, Blue Sea New Materials Company held a ceremony to kick off the construction of the high-end polyolefin new materials project, marking the official entry of the project’s development into a new phase characterized by the comprehensive construction of the key core facilities. This project is an important part of the strategic cooperation agreement between China National Petroleum Corporation and Jiangsu Province. It involves the construction of 18 new chemical processing units, all of which will utilize domestic technology, with 16 of them employing China National Petroleum Corporation’s own proprietary technologies. The project plan includes the construction of a 200,000 tons/year FDPE plant, 2×25,000 tons/year EPDM plants, a 100,000 tons/year POE plant, a 100,000 tons/year 1-hexene/1-octene plant, and 2×1,000 Nm³/h electrolytic water hydrogen production plants, along with the installation of utility systems and auxiliary facilities. China National Petroleum Corporation’s Dushanzi Petrochemical has made significant breakthroughs in POE production. On the morning of December 25, 2024, Dushanzi Petrochemical Company announced that the production volume of its new polyolefin elastomer (POE) products had exceeded 10,000 tons. On May 6, the company switched to producing POE as planned, and the following day achieved a technological breakthrough in China’s first production of polyolefin elastomers via the gas-phase method. Following a professional technical evaluation of the pilot-produced products, it was found that their performance was comparable to that of imported products. The company subsequently promoted these products for trial use among more than 80 customers in over 10 fields related to photovoltaic films and modifications, continuously improving the products based on market feedback. In August, following market feedback that helped determine the directions for product improvement, Dushanzi Petrochemical resumed the production of POE. The performance of the products manufactured improved significantly: their density decreased further, and their light transmittance was better than that of similar imported products. This led to full recognition from customers, and these products began to be used on a large scale as substitutes for imports in areas such as photovoltaic films and graft-modified materials. In the future, Dushanzi Petrochemical will continue to increase its efforts in research and development, aiming to create new products with lower density. It will also accelerate the upgrading of its production facilities, striving to achieve an annual production capacity of 244,000 tons within three years, thereby taking domestic technology to a new level. 3. Wanhua Chemical: The 400,000-ton/year polyolefin elastomer project carried out by Wanhua Chemical (Penglai) Co., Ltd. represents an important investment by the company in the field of high-end polyolefins. In September 2021, Wanhua Chemical completed the pilot production of POE products and established several production facilities with an annual capacity of 200,000 tons each; these facilities are among the key components of the company’s \"1.2 million tons per year ethylene and downstream high-end polyolefins project\". On June 29, 2024, the 200,000-ton-per-year POE production unit of the first phase of Wanhua Chemical (Penglai)’s 400,000-ton-per-year polyolefin elastomer project achieved full operational capacity, and qualified products were successfully produced. This marked the successful commissioning of China’s first large-scale POE manufacturing facility that was developed through independent research and development. At the end of February 2025, the second phase of Wanhua Chemical (Penglai)’s 400,000 tons per year polyolefin elastomer production project commenced construction. As a downstream product of the ethylene production facility’s second phase, this project represents an important high-value downstream product in the ethylene value chain, and it can significantly enhance the value of that chain. It is understood that this project is the largest industrial production facility of its kind in China at present, utilizing technology independently developed by Wanhua, and is expected to be completed and put into operation by the end of 2025. Once all the production facilities are in operation, they will be able to work in conjunction with the 9 production units of Wanhua’s Phase I plant, allowing for the sharing of raw materials and facilities, thereby helping Penglai to develop a globally leading cluster for green and low-carbon new materials. 4. Other enterprises: In addition to the industry giants mentioned above, there are many other companies in China that are actively exploring the field of high-end polyolefins, each leveraging its own strengths to contribute to the development of this industry in our country. The main unit construction of China Coal Yulin’s 900,000 tons/year polyolefin project commenced on June 18, 2024. The project is expected to require an investment of 23.888 billion yuan. Its main construction components include a production facility for 2.2 million tons per year of methanol and 900,000 tons per year of polyolefins. At the same time, the existing first-phase coal chemical plant will be upgraded, with the construction of a facility for producing 250,000 tons per year of LDPE/EVA, as well as related supporting projects. The main units of the project include air separation, gasification, purification, sulfur recovery, methanol synthesis, MTO, olefin separation, 3 sets of polyolefin plants, and 1 set of EVA plant, etc. Completion of construction and commissioning are expected by 2026. The first phase of the China Coal Yulin Coal Deep Processing Base project features facilities with an annual production capacity of 2.05 million tons of methanol and 600,000 tons of polyolefins, along with supporting utility systems; these facilities were completed and put into operation in July 2014. The high-end new materials project of Zhejiang Petrochemical was launched on July 19, 2024, at the Zhoushan Green Petrochemical Base. The project includes a 350,000-ton/year α-olefin plant and 2×200,000-ton/year POE plants, with completion scheduled for 2026. On January 5, 2025, the POE combined cabinet room for Zhejiang Petrochemical’s high-end new materials project was successfully completed, and the first lifting operation for the nitric acid plant was also carried out successfully, marking a significant milestone in the construction of this project. The first high-end new material industrial park in China for the comprehensive utilization of alpha-olefins, invested and built by Satellite Petrochemical in the Xuwei New Area of Lianyungang, officially commenced construction on June 24, 2024. With a total investment of 26.6 billion yuan, this project is a key strategic initiative by Satellite Chemical to establish a technology company focused on low-carbon chemical materials, centered around the integration of light hydrocarbons. It utilizes independently developed high-carbon α-olefin technologies to produce high-end new materials such as advanced polyolefins, polyethylene elastomers, lubricant base oils, and ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene; these materials offer broad market prospects. Additionally, the project makes use of the hydrogen gas generated as a by-product to contribute to the development of new energy systems. Hengli Petrochemical’s Dingjide Petrochemical POE high-end new materials project was established in September 2023 at the Xizhongdao Petrochemical Industry Base in the Changxing Island Economic Development Zone of Dalian, Liaoning, with completion and operation scheduled for June 2025. This project will not only fill a gap in the industry and overcome technical barriers, but it is also expected to lead the sector in terms of technological and industrial capabilities. Significant progress has also been made on the 300,000 tons per year vinyl polyolefin elastomer (EPOE) project of Shandong Dongming Petrochemical Group. On February 28, 2025, the construction of this project officially began. Dongming Petrochemical, in collaboration with the research team led by Professor Chen Changle from the University of Science and Technology of China, has successfully developed a new production process for vinyl polyolefin elastomers (EPOE) using ethylene as the sole raw material. This technology fills a gap in the world; it is the first of its kind globally, and it possesses complete independent intellectual property rights. Previously, Dongming Petrochemical, in collaboration with Zhike Kele Company empowered by the University of Science and Technology of China, successfully built the world’s first pilot and industrial-scale production facility for EPOE with an annual capacity of 5,000 tons. High-quality products were produced through this facility, providing valuable experience for the industrial application of EPOE technology. The 300,000-ton/year high-end polyolefin project operated by Huizhou Lituo, a subsidiary of Yueyang Xingchang, officially entered the trial operation phase on January 31, 2024, and qualified products were produced, marking the complete completion and commissioning of the project. The investment in this project amounts to approximately 1.2 billion yuan. It was approved by the board of directors in July 2021 and ratified by the shareholders’ meeting in August of the same year. The successful commissioning of Yueyang Xingchang in the field of high-end polyolefins has injected new momentum into its development in the petrochemical industry. With continuous advancements in China’s field of high-end polyolefins, it is expected that by 2030 the domestic production rate of such polyolefins could exceed 50%. The following reply is: An overview of recent POE project developments.