Shaanxi has decided to suspend the construction of a 300,000-ton ethylene glycol plant along the Wei River in Binzhou

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On July 25, the 7 provinces (cities) undergoing the second round of central environmental inspections publicly disclosed their plans for addressing the issues identified during the inspections, identifying a total of 375 tasks to be carried out. In terms of corrective measures, actively phasing out outdated production capacity in highly polluting industries has become a common choice for many provinces. For example, Hubei has proposed to carry out a comprehensive cleanup and rectification of phosphorus chemical enterprises and chemical industrial parks along the river ； Gansu requires localized supervision of enterprises with outdated production capacity in the cement and flat glass industries that are to be phased out ； Shaanxi has decided to suspend the construction of the 300,000-ton per year ethylene glycol production facility along the Wei River in Binzhou and to reevaluate the project. Next, the **Environmental Protection Inspection Office will keep a close eye on the progress of rectification efforts carried out at the local level, continuously urging local authorities to enhance publicity and information disclosure regarding these rectification efforts, thereby maintaining constant pressure to ensure compliance. According to the Shaanxi Provincial Environmental Protection Department, the \"Rectification Plan for Implementing the Feedback from the Central Environmental Protection Inspection in Shaanxi Province\" states that since 2014, Xianyang City has violated relevant regulations by planning projects such as the second phase of the Datang Binchang Power Plant and a 300,000-ton coal-based ethylene glycol production facility in Binchang, Shaanxi. Additionally, various coal-fired heating boiler projects were established, including those in the Xinxing Textile Industrial Park, the second phase of Xianyang West District, and the eastern area of Xingping City’s central district; 46 small coal-fired boilers with a capacity of less than 10 steam tons were also built. Rectification goal: Strictly control the construction of highly polluting projects and phase out outdated production capacity. Corrective measures: 1. Suspend the construction of the second phase of Datang Binchang Power Plant and the 300,000 tons per year ethylene glycol production project of Shaanxi Weihe Binzhou Chemical Co., Ltd., and re-examine these projects in accordance with relevant regulations. 2. Carry out ultra-low emission upgrades on 2 coal-fired boilers in the emerging textile industrial park. 3. Suspend the construction of the second phase of the centralized heating project in the western area, and adjust the energy usage methods for the heating boilers by replacing all coal-fired boilers with clean-energy boilers. 4. Carry out ultra-low emission upgrades to the coal-fired heating boilers in the eastern area of Xingping City’s central urban district, and remove all coal-fired boilers within the coverage area of the heating pipeline network. 5. Demolish the 46 newly installed coal-fired boilers with a capacity of 10 steam tons per hour or less, and complete the procedures for canceling their registration. 6. Investigate cases of unauthorized approval, and hold the relevant responsible persons accountable based on the investigation results. Time frame for implementation of corrective actions: Phased implementation from May 2017 to November 2018. Responsible entities: Xianyang Municipal Party Committee and the municipal ** authorities. Responsible leaders: Yue Liang and Wei Hua. The 300,000-ton/year coal-to-ethylene glycol production project operated by Shaanxi Weihua Binzhou Chemical Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of Shaanxi Coal Chemical Industry Group, is located within the Xinminyuan Modern Coal Chemical Industrial Park in Bin County, covering an area of 600,000 square meters. In April 2016, Shaanxi Weihe Binzhou Chemical Co., Ltd. signed a CTEG technology licensing agreement and an engineering design contract for a 300,000 tons per year coal-based ethylene glycol project with Gaoxuehui and Donghua Engineering. The original owner of the project was Shaanxi Binchang Mining Group Co., Ltd. On November 19, 2014, the 300,000-ton coal-to-ethylene glycol project of Binchang Mining Group was officially transferred to Shaanxi Weihe Coal Chemical Group Co., Ltd. The project construction includes the main facilities such as gasification units, purification units, and ethylene glycol synthesis units, as well as auxiliary facilities for water supply and drainage, desalination stations, power supply, heating, and fire protection. It also encompasses storage and transportation systems, as well as environmental protection measures such as waste gas treatment, wastewater treatment, and solid waste disposal. Upon completion, the project will have an annual production capacity of 300,000 tons of ethylene glycol; the by-products will include 17,576 tons of crude DMC per year, 5,336 tons of DMO Recombined components per year, 5,920 tons of fusel oil per year, 13,440 tons of light fractions per year, 6,048 tons of heavy fractions of ethylene glycol per year, and 4,321.6 tons of sulfur per year. The total investment for the project is 5.495 billion yuan, of which 444 million yuan is allocated to environmental protection measures. The project construction period is 30 months. The implementation of the central environmental inspection system has shifted environmental governance from focusing solely on supervising enterprises to emphasizing both enterprise supervision and government oversight. As a result, the enforcement of environmental regulations has been significantly strengthened, which can effectively promote the upgrading of enterprises’ production processes and is beneficial for industry leaders that are good at pollution control.