EIA approval process for Sinopec Total’s 800,000-ton coal-to-olefins project underway

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Approval process for the environmental impact assessment of Sinopec-Dow’s 800,000-ton/year coal-to-olefins project / Author/Source: Date: 2016-03-28 Clicks: 6 On March 25, 2016, the Ministry of Environmental Protection announced that it had officially accepted the environmental impact assessment documents for the joint venture between Sinopec and Dow aimed at producing 800,000 tons of coal-based polyolefins per year. The project is located in the Dali Industrial Park, Zhungeer Banner, Ordos City, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. The developer is China Power Investment Mengxi Energy Co., Ltd., while the environmental assessment agency is China Wuhuan Engineering Co., Ltd. Supporting facilities: The project is located in the Dali Industrial Park, Zhungeer Banner, Ordos City, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. Ordos is rich in coal resources; the Zhungeer Coal Field, Dongsheng Coal Field, and Zhuozishan Coal Field together have proven reserves of 124.4 billion tons. The reserves in the coal fields above the survey level as well as in the shallow areas that have been affected by mining amount to approximately 17.5 billion tons, while the planned but unused reserves (above the survey level) total 49.8 billion tons. Most of them have the conditions suitable for adit mining, as well as the characteristics of low ash, low sulfur, low phosphorus, and high calorific value. The Daliu Industrial Park is equipped with a landfill for the disposal of general solid waste and a hazardous waste treatment center for the disposal of hazardous waste ； The railway runs through the park, providing a favorable basis for the transportation of raw materials and products. The water required for the project comes from the Liulin Tan water supply project in the industrial park; this project is designed to supply water for production purposes in the Dali Industrial Park, with a water supply capacity of approximately 119 million tons per year, ensuring a stable supply of water for the project. Process Plan: For the key process technologies in this project, such as coal gasification, methanol synthesis, polyethylene, and polypropylene, there are advanced and mature processes available worldwide, along with extensive experience in operation and management. For the key equipment of this project, such as gasifiers, methanol synthesis towers, syngas compressors, propylene compressors, etc., there are advanced and reliable manufacturing technologies available worldwide. This project adopts the IGCC process scheme. In its process design, it takes the entire plant into consideration and integrates energy-saving and water-saving technical measures, such as heat integration between units, hierarchical utilization of the steam power system, and recovery of low-grade heat. The main water-saving measures adopted in the project include reusing the water treated through biological and chemical processes as makeup water for the circulating water system, improving the quality of this reused water, increasing the concentration ratio of the circulating water, and reducing the amount of wastewater discharged ； Air coolers are used for turbine cooling to reduce the consumption of circulating water. Environmental standards: The project adopts advanced production processes and stringent environmental protection measures to minimize the emission of various pollutants, thereby meeting the strict requirements of environmental standards. If the IGCC process is adopted for this project, low-temperature methanol washing can be used to purify the raw gas, removing over 99% of the sulfur contained in it, thereby resulting in low levels of sulfur dioxide in the flue gases emitted by the gas turbine ； The sulfur recovery unit employs advanced exhaust gas treatment technologies (two-stage oxygen-enriched Claus process + SCOT hydrogenation reduction + alkaline absorption), ensuring that the emitted exhaust gases meet the special emission limits specified in the \"Emission Standards for Pollutants in the Petroleum Refining Industry\" (GB31570-2015) ； The gas turbine is equipped with a selective catalytic reduction (SCR) denitration system, ensuring that the exhaust gases meet the special emission limits specified in the \"Emission Standards for Air Pollutants from Thermal Power Plants\" (GB13223-2011) ； The flue gas from coal-fired boilers in operation is treated using bag filtration for dust removal, limestone-gypsum process for desulfurization, low-nitrogen combustion and SCR for denitrification, as well as wet electrostatic dust collection; the emissions meet the limits specified in Document No. 2093 issued by the National Development and Reform Commission’s Energy Department, namely the \"Action Plan for Energy Conservation, Emission Reduction, Upgrade and Transformation of Coal-fired Power Plants (2014–2020)\“. Due to the various air pollution control measures implemented in this project, the emissions of its main air pollutants have been significantly reduced compared to similar domestic enterprises, as shown in the table below. Energy conversion: By employing various advanced processes and energy-saving measures, such as the IGCC process, waste heat recovery, fuel gas recovery, and efficient olefin separation technologies, this project has achieved a higher efficiency in energy conversion. As a result, its energy efficiency and coal consumption are both lower than the advanced target values specified in the \"Plan for Demonstration Projects of Advanced Coal Processing\" for the 12th Five-Year Plan period, as well as the requirements set out in Document No. 2774 issued by the Development and Reform Commission regarding energy efficiency indicators for this project. The details are shown in the table below. http://img.yf116.cn/image/img/20160328/9943294490.jpg Water resource consumption: By adopting various water-saving technologies and measures, such as making extensive use of air cooling technology, implementing closed-loop water systems, using electric drives instead of steam drives, and recycling treated wastewater without discharging it, this project has significantly reduced its water consumption. As a result, the fresh water usage in this project is lower than the advanced standards set out in the \"Plan for Demonstration Projects of Deep Coal Processing\" for the 12th Five-Year Plan period, as well as the requirements specified in Document No. 2774 issued by the Development and Reform Commission. The details are shown in the table below. http://img.yf116.cn/image/img/20160328/91043300449.jpg Product Solution: The main products of this project are polyethylene and polypropylene. This product solution takes into account the development trends of the domestic polyolefin market, and aims to make full use of Total’s long-standing advantages in the development and production of high-quality polyolefin products in order to enhance their competitiveness in the market. Polyethylene products are designed for the production of bimodal pipe materials, bimodal film materials, metallocene film materials, large-diameter blown plastics, injection-molded materials for bottle caps, and materials specifically used for automobile fuel tanks; most of these are high-end products for various application areas. Polypropylene products are designed for the production of biaxially oriented polypropylene (BOPP) film materials, specialized polypropylene fibers for medical and health applications, as well as injection-grade copolymerized polypropylene with high or low melt indices. http://img.yf116.cn/image/img/20160328/910543305444.jpg http://img.yf116.cn/image/img/20160328/911193307923.jpg These varieties are currently used mainly by high-end end-users in China; domestic production is severely insufficient, so imports are relied on to meet the demand. PE-100RC pipes produced at Total’s twin-peak level offer superior quality compared to PC-100, which is currently widely used; they can be backfilled without sand, thereby saving on installation costs. Total Group uses the Metallocene-produced Limylene® brand of polyethylene and polypropylene materials for manufacturing sheets, packaging bags, bottle caps, non-woven fabrics, and products via injection molding. These materials can reduce costs by 5–27%, which is of great significance for energy savings and environmental protection across the entire supply chain. Overview of the process flow: The raw coal sourced from outside the plant is processed by a coal powder preparation unit to produce qualified coal powder. In the coal gasification unit, pulverized coal and oxygen from the air separation unit are used to produce raw coal gas through a dry pulverized coal pressurized gasification process. Most of this raw coal gas is sent to a carbon monoxide conversion unit, where part of the CO in the raw coal gas is converted into H2 using a sulfur-resistant, wide-temperature partial conversion process. The resulting converted gas is then sent to an acid gas removal unit, where acidic gases such as CO2 and H2S are removed using a low-temperature methanol washing process; the purified gas is subsequently sent to a methanol synthesis unit ； Some of the raw gas is sent directly to an acid gas removal unit to remove H2S, and then to a thermal power plant for power generation. The H2S-containing gas removed is sent to a sulfur recovery unit for sulfur recovery, while part of the CO2 gas is returned to the gasification unit. The purified gas is sent to the methanol synthesis unit to produce crude methanol; the vent gas is sent to the hydrogen recovery unit for hydrogen extraction. The recovered pure hydrogen is used in the polypropylene (PP) and polyethylene (PE) production units, while the remaining gas is recycled within the system or sent to the plant’s fuel gas network. Crude methanol is converted into MTO-grade methanol through a methanol distillation unit. MTO-grade methanol is fed into methanol-to-olefins units to produce olefins, as well as by-products such as ethylene, propylene, liquefied petroleum gas, C5, and gasoline. Propylene and ethylene go to the polypropylene and polyethylene plants respectively, where they are polymerized into the target products polypropylene and polyethylene. http://img.yf116.cn/image/img/20160328/913173319796.jpg http://img.yf116.cn/image/img/20160328/919193355959.jpg Project Background: China Power Investment Corporation (hereinafter referred to as CPIC) and Total Group (hereinafter referred to as Total) have been engaging in cooperation on coal-based polyolefin projects since early 2009. Total is very optimistic about the prospects for the development of coal chemical industry in China, and recognizes the resources, capabilities, and future growth potential of China Power Investment ； China Power Investment recognizes Total’s extensive expertise in polyolefin production as well as its experience in international markets. On the basis of reaching a consensus, the two parties have joined forces to leverage their respective strengths and are willing to invest together in the development of coal chemical projects. Guided by the principle of sustainable development, they will employ advanced manufacturing technologies, efficient water-saving measures, and reliable environmental protection techniques to jointly build large-scale coal-based polyolefin projects that meet world-class standards. SPIC is a super-large central enterprise under the administration of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission. It is a comprehensive energy group that operates in various sectors such as electricity, coal, aluminum, railways, and ports. Its total assets are spread across 28 provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions across the country, and it owns 7 listed companies at home and abroad, including Shanghai Electric. In recent years, China Power Investment has adopted a three-step development strategy, focusing on electricity as the core and coal as the foundation, pursuing integrated industrial development, and actively transforming itself into a comprehensive energy enterprise group. By the end of 2015, SPIC’s installed power capacity was 107 million kilowatts, with clean energy accounting for 40.06% of that total. Its coal production capacity was 80.4 million tons, while its aluminum electrolysis capacity was 2.72 million tons. The length of railways in its operation network was 505 kilometers. The total value of its assets was 775.1 billion yuan, with the net assets attributable to the parent company amounting to 45 billion yuan. The total number of employees was 140,000. SPIC Group has made it onto the Fortune Global 500 list for four consecutive years, ranking 403rd in 2015. Since entering the coal industry in 2004, SPIC has seen rapid development in this sector, taking the restructuring of the Horin River Coal Industry Group in Inner Mongolia as an opportunity. The amount of coal resources acquired, as well as coal production capacity and output, have all increased sharply; the coal industry has thus become one of its three key business areas and a major source of profit growth. Total Group is one of the world’s leading companies in the oil, gas, and chemicals sectors; it is also the fifth-largest publicly listed company in the oil and gas industry. In 2014, it ranked 11th on the list of the world’s top 500 companies. Total is active throughout the entire oil and gas value chain, involved in everything from exploration and production to processing and sales. It is also committed to developing solar and biomass energy to ensure a supply of energy for the future. In 2014, its sales revenue was approximately $236.1 billion, with a net profit of around $12.8 billion. The company operates in more than 130 countries around the world, with over 900 business locations in total, and employs roughly 100,000 people. Through decades of operations in relevant fields, Total possesses world-class capabilities and experience in areas such as process development, project construction, production management, and product marketing. It has a strong reserve of technical expertise and talent, as well as comprehensive market channels and customer bases. Total entered the Chinese market in 1979, and has successfully established dozens of joint venture or wholly-owned enterprises in various fields such as crude oil exploration, processing, sales, and chemicals. It has also built and strengthened partnerships on a global scale with numerous large state-owned enterprises in China. To ensure the availability of resources and meet future needs, Total invests heavily in research and development, seeking innovative solutions for society, and striving to control and reduce its impact on the environment; for example, by reducing water consumption in order to protect local natural resources ； Strictly prevent soil and groundwater pollution ； Continuously improve the energy efficiency of product manufacturing processes ； As well as managing the product’s entire life cycle, etc. The joint development of coal-based polyolefin production through a strategic partnership with the American company UOP is also one of the key solutions, centered on an integrated process of \"Methanol-to-Olefins + Olefin Cracking\" (MTO+OCP). Through the adoption of world-leading MTO+OCP and polyolefin production technologies, as well as innovative water-saving, energy-saving measures and CO2 reduction strategies, Total aims to leverage its expertise in the polyolefin sector, the strong financial resources of the entire group, and synergies across the value chain. In partnership with China Power Investment, which possesses resource advantages, strong development capabilities, and a sense of social responsibility, Total seeks to establish a modern coal chemical upgrading demonstration project that fully meets China’s industrial development plans as well as requirements related to energy conservation and emission reduction.