Mechanical completion of the high-density (bimodal) polyethylene unit in Fujian Gulei’s 1.5 million tons/year ethylene and downstream processing complex project

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On March 27, the mechanical completion ceremony was held for the high-density (bimodal) polyethylene unit of the Fujian Gulei 1.5 million tons per year ethylene and downstream processing complex project, marking the full completion of the main construction work and equipment installation. The project has now entered the stages of final inspections and adjustments, intermediate handover, and joint commissioning. Located in the Gulei Economic Development Zone of Zhangzhou City, Fujian Province, this project is a key initiative for capacity and investment cooperation between China and Saudi Arabia, as well as a major foreign investment project; it facilitates the strategic alignment between China’s Belt and Road Initiative and Saudi Arabia’s 2030 Vision. The project is planned to have an annual production capacity of up to 1.8 million tons of ethylene along with related downstream processing facilities. It utilizes 19 world-leading technologies, and its indicators regarding energy use, waste emissions, and CO₂ emissions are at international advanced levels. The project features good economic benefits, a large range of high-end products, low energy consumption and emission levels, large-scale facilities, and strong driving effects on the downstream industry. Upon completion, the project will enhance the sustainable development of the petrochemical industry in China and Saudi Arabia, inject new momentum into capacity cooperation between the two countries, and help Fujian accelerate the development of its core area as part of the 21st-century Maritime Silk Road. The Fujian Gulei 1.5 million tons per year ethylene and downstream processing complex project (Sino-Saudi Gulei Ethylene Project) has a total investment of 42.07 billion yuan, with a total land area of 297.1855 hectares. It involves the construction of 14 chemical processing units, including one unit for producing 1.5 million tons per year of ethylene and related downstream products, and the construction period is expected to be 54 months. Construction scale: Ethylene and downstream products – The ethylene production capacity is 1.5 million tons per year. For downstream products, the planned capacities are 100,000/1 million tons per year for ethylene oxide/ethylene glycol, 400,000 tons per year for HDPE, 600,000 tons per year for mLLDPE/HDPE, and 50,000 tons per year for hexene-1. Propylene and downstream products – Downstream of propylene, 400,000 tons per year of polypropylene (impact-resistant/random) and 550,000 tons per year of polypropylene (homopolymer/random) are planned to be produced. Additionally, downstream of propylene, plans are in place to build facilities for producing 250,000/150,000 tons per year of phenol acetone, 270,000 tons per year of bisphenol A, and 290,000 tons per year of polycarbonate. In addition, facilities for the hydrogenation of 910,000 tons per year of pyrolysis gasoline (including styrene extraction), butadiene extraction at 220,000 tons per year, butene-1 production at 56,000 tons per year, and aromatic extraction at 570,000 tons per year have also been built. In terms of processing techniques: the project uses low-pressure gas-phase fluidized bed technology to produce mLLDPE/HDPE, a slurry process to produce bimodal HDPE, an ethylene oligomerization process to produce hexene-1, gas-phase fluidized bed technology to produce homopolymer/random polypropylene, and a gas-phase horizontal stirred bed technology to produce impact-resistant polypropylene.