Important signal? The coal chemical industry **is no longer encouraged**

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Important signal? The coal chemical industry **is no longer encouraged** – Author/Source: Huahua Network, Coal Chemicals; Date: 2019-04-11; Clicks: 6. Recently, the National Development and Reform Commission released in its entirety the \"Guidelines for Industrial Structure Adjustment (2019 version, draft for comments)\", which covers various energy sectors such as oil, natural gas, petrochemicals, and chemicals. There are 20 categories of encouraged technologies in the petrochemical and chemical industry, including: the development of production technologies such as coal-based methanol for aromatic compounds production, co-production of aromatic compounds through the differentiated utilization of coal, and the differentiated utilization of low-grade coal; as well as industrial demonstration applications for these technologies. Additionally, there are projects related to the pyrolysis of low-grade coal on a scale of millions of tons, and the deep processing of coal tar in quantities of 500,000 tons or more ； High-performance radial tires and intelligent manufacturing technologies and equipment; production of aviation tires, agricultural radial tires, as well as the specialized materials and equipment required for them; development and application of new types of natural rubber ； Fluorine-containing fine chemicals and high-quality fluorine-containing inorganic salts ； Refining technologies for sulfur- and acid-containing heavy, low-quality crude oils, as well as the development and application of technologies for producing high-standard petroleum products ； Production of high-quality potassium fertilizers as well as various specialized fertilizers, water-soluble fertilizers, liquid fertilizers, fertilizers containing medium and trace elements, nitro-based fertilizers, and slow- and controlled-release fertilizers; production of phosphorus fertilizers using the nitric acid phosphorus process; efforts by nitrogen fertilizer manufacturers to reduce energy consumption and emissions and to adjust their raw material mix; development and application of technologies for the comprehensive utilization of phosphogypsum; purification plants for wet-process phosphoric acid with an annual capacity of 100,000 tons or more ； The development and production of new types and formulations of pesticides that are efficient, safe, and environmentally friendly (such as water-based formulations), as well as specialized intermediates and additives (such as water-based additives). Cancelled incentive projects: Ethylene glycol production plants using synthesis gas at a capacity of 200,000 tons per year or more ； Polycarbonate production plants with a capacity of 60,000 tons per year or more, using non-phosgene processes ； Development and application of methoxyacrylate method for acetochlor production, aqueous phase method for chlorpyrifos production, and process for recovering chloromethane from glyphosate ； Development and application of clean production processes such as ethyl chloride synthesis technology ； Our country is the world’s largest consumer of ethylene glycol, with annual imports exceeding 7 million tons for seven consecutive years; in 2017, these imports reached a record high of 8.6 million tons. The degree of dependence on imports has remained above 60% for a long time. Although there is a shortage of ethylene glycol production capacity in China and across Asia, the global capacity for ethylene glycol is actually excessive. In terms of capacity growth, in 2018 alone, China added 2.22 million tons of new production capacity for ethylene glycol produced from coal (syngas), bringing the total capacity for such production to 4.66 million tons ； Between 2019 and 2021, another 33 coal (syngas)-based ethylene glycol production projects will be brought online in China, adding 9.47 million tons of capacity. By then, the total production capacity of coal-based ethylene glycol will reach 14.13 million tons. Among them, the total production capacity of ethylene glycol projects that came online in 2019 alone (most of which are coal-based ethylene glycol plants) reached 3.64 million tons, an increase of 34.5%. There are 13 categories of activities that are encouraged in the petrochemical industry; these include the construction of production facilities with a capacity of up to 10 million tons per year for atmospheric and vacuum distillation, up to 1.5 million tons per year for catalytic cracking, up to 1 million tons per year for continuous reforming (including aromatic extraction), and up to 1.5 million tons per year for hydrocracking ； New installations with a capacity of less than 800,000 tons per year for the production of ethylene via naphtha cracking, less than 130,000 tons per year for acrylonitrile, less than 1 million tons per year for purified terephthalic acid, less than 200,000 tons per year for ethylene glycol, less than 200,000 tons per year for styrene (excluding processes that use dry gas to produce ethylbenzene), less than 100,000 tons per year for caprolactam, less than 300,000 tons per year for acetic acid produced by the carbonylation process (excluding cases where waste gases are utilized comprehensively), facilities for producing methanol from natural gas (excluding natural gas with a CO2 content of over 20%), plants for producing methanol from coal with a capacity of less than 1 million tons per year (excluding cases where waste gases are utilized comprehensively), facilities for producing methyl methacrylate via the cyanohydrin method (excluding those that utilize by-product hydrogen cyanide), plants for producing propylene/crotonol from grains, facilities for producing propylene oxide via the chlorohydrin method, and facilities for producing epichlorohydrin via high-temperature chlorination of propylene, as well as plants for producing saponins in quantities of less than 300 tons per year (including hydrolysis products, excluding cases where comprehensive utilization is applied).