Environmental impact assessment approval for Xinjiang Xinye Zhundong coal-to-natural gas project with an output of 2 billion cubic meters per year

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On October 24, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment issued its approval for the environmental impact assessment report of Xinjiang Xinye State-owned Assets Operation (Group) Co., Ltd.’s 2 billion cubic meters per year coal-to-natural gas project in Zhundong. Located in the Zhundong Economic and Technological Development Zone of Changji Hui Autonomous Prefecture in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, this project uses coal as raw material and employs processes such as fixed-bed coal crushing under pressure for gasification, shift reaction, acid gas removal, and methanation to build a new coal-to-natural gas facility with an annual production capacity of 2 billion cubic meters. The project design calls for 4.8444 million tons of raw coal per year, 499,700 tons of fuel coal per year, and 8.956 million cubic meters of fresh water per year. The main components of the project include 10 units such as gasification, shift and cooling, acid gas removal, methanation, sulfur recovery, tar residue distillation, air separation, hydrogen production via water electrolysis, carbon capture, and methanol production from carbon dioxide ； Auxiliary facilities include power stations, water treatment plants, circulating water systems, substations, flare systems, etc ； Storage and transportation engineering includes coal storage and transportation, liquid storage tanks, and loading/unloading stations, etc ； Environmental protection engineering includes waste gas treatment facilities, wastewater treatment facilities, and solid waste treatment facilities, among others. The project is located in a **strategic base for coal-based oil and gas production; it meets the requirements set out in the \"Principles for the Approval of Environmental Impact Assessment Documents for Modern Coal Chemical Industry Projects.\" It plays a positive role in contributing to **energy security, promoting the clean and efficient use of coal, and facilitating the integration of modern coal chemical industry with industries such as \"green electricity\" and \"green hydrogen\". The project is located in an area with a fragile ecological environment, and the region faces significant pressure to improve environmental quality on a continuous basis. It is necessary to strictly implement various measures for pollution control and environmental risk prevention, establish and enforce strict environmental management systems and environmental monitoring plans, and set up timely and effective emergency response and coordination mechanisms. After comprehensive consideration, our department principally agrees to the scale, process, location of the construction project, as well as the environmental protection measures outlined in your company’s environmental impact report. On October 14, an approval evaluation meeting for Xinjiang Xinye State-owned Assets Operation (Group) Co., Ltd.’s 2 billion cubic meters per year coal-to-natural gas project in Zhundong, organized by the Petroleum and Chemical Industry Planning Institute, was held in Beijing. Project Overview: Project Name: Environmental Impact Assessment Document for Xinjiang Xinye State-owned Assets Operation (Group) Co., Ltd.’s 2 billion cubic meters per year coal-to-natural gas project in Zhundong is to be submitted for public review. Construction location: Jiji Lake Industrial Park, Zhundong Economic and Technological Development Zone, Xinjiang. Constructor: Wojiang Clean Energy (Zhundong Economic and Technological Development Zone, Xinjiang) Co., Ltd. Environmental impact assessment agency: China Global Engineering Co., Ltd. Project overview: The project includes the main construction works, storage and transportation facilities, heating systems, auxiliary facilities, as well as environmental protection measures. The main projects include 10 units such as air separation, coal gasification, shift and cooling, acidic gas removal, methanation, sulfur recovery, tar residue dry distillation, water electrolysis for hydrogen production, carbon capture, and green methanol ； Storage and transportation engineering includes coal storage and transportation, liquid storage tanks, and loading/unloading stations, etc ； Heating projects include power stations, waste heat recovery, etc ； Auxiliary facilities include water treatment plants, circulating water systems, substations, flare systems, etc ； Environmental protection projects include sewage treatment systems, VOCs emission control devices, solid waste storage facilities, and more. The project relies on external coal transport pipelines, external power supply facilities, external water supply pipelines, carbon dioxide transmission and oil displacement projects, the park’s accident containment tanks, the park’s slag dump, and hazardous waste disposal systems. The total investment in the project amounts to 15.488 billion yuan, of which 2.817 billion yuan is allocated to environmental protection measures, accounting for 18.2% of the total project investment. Demonstration tasks assigned to this project: 1. Pursue efforts to localize low-temperature methanol washing, methanation technologies, and catalysts. With the localization of key process equipment, instruments, and control systems, the overall domestication rate for this project exceeds 98.86%. 2. Promote the large-scale replacement with green electricity and green hydrogen. By the time the project comes online (in 2027), 53.8% of the electricity will come from purchased green power. By 2030, all electricity will be green. 3. It is planned to demonstrate a φ5000, 6.0MPa coal gasification furnace under pressure, in order to lay the foundation for the scaling up of key equipment in coal-to-gas production in the future.