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Sinopec is making significant investments in western energy hubs – the Tahe refining and chemical integration project, with a total investment of 30 billion yuan, was recently made public. This expansion project will increase the existing oil refining capacity from 5 million tons per year to 8.5 million tons, while also enabling the construction of facilities for producing 800,000 tons per year of ethylene and 800,000 tons per year of aromatics. Upon completion of the project, Xinjiang’s crude oil processing capacity will exceed 30 million tons per year, reducing the amount of crude oil that needs to be transported eastward by 3 million tons per year – which is equivalent to eliminating 12 freight trains carrying 50 tank cars each per day. According to the public information, Unit 3 of the old plant’s 5 million tons per year atmospheric and vacuum distillation unit will process the high-sulfur, heavy crude oil from Tahe. The accompanying 2×2 million tons per year fluidized-bed residue hydrogenation units, with a conversion rate of 98%, constitute the world’s largest residue treatment system, enabling the recovery of 4 billion yuan worth of value from waste materials each year. The new plant complex features an 800,000-ton ethylene facility, along with 400,000-ton polyethylene and 400,000-ton polypropylene plants, aimed at addressing the annual shortage of 6 million tons of plastic raw materials in the Yangtze River Delta region. The 800,000-ton aromatic hydrocarbons complex is designed to support the vertical industrial chain of \"PX-PTA-polyester,\" and it may facilitate cooperation between Xinjiang’s cotton industry and the textile industries in the eastern regions.