Wanhua gains approval for new $2.5 billion chemicals plant

YANTAI, China—Wanhua Chemical Group Co. Ltd. has been given the green light by the Shandong Provincial Development and Reform Commission to construct a major chemicals plant in Yantai Chemical Industry Park, in eastern China.

The facility will produce 1.2 million metric tons per year of ethylene and downstream high-end polyolefin products, Wanhua said in an Aug. 23 statement.

The project will include the construction of an ethylene cracker; a 250,000-metric-ton-per-annum (250 ktpa), low density polyethylene (LDPE) plant and two 200 ktpa polyolefin elastomer (POE) plants.

The facility will also have a 200 ktpa butadiene production unit as well as 550 ktpa pyrolysis gasoline hydrogenation unit—including a 30 ktpa styrene extraction unit, Wanhua added.

The total investment in the project is about $2.53 billion, which Wanhua said is subject to further approvals by the board of directors and investors.

The Wanhua statement did not provide a timeline for the project, but the Chinese group previously stated that the project is planned from 2022 to 2025, with early production scheduled for June 2024.