China's CTL Capacity Seen to Be 1.6 MLN T/A by 2009     

At the end of 2008, in spite of the global spreading of economic crisis and flat market of energy and chemicals, China's CTL industry obtained splendid achievements and breakthroughs successively. On December 22nd, 2008, Lu'An 10 000 t/a cobalt catalyst packed reactor produced oil products. On December 31st, Shenhua's 1.08 million t/a direct CTL project located in Erdos got through the whole process flow and produced oil products, preparing to realize normal operations by further running-in. All these predicted that China will gain decisive progress in 2009 for development of its CTL industry.
   With the continuing development of the processes of Chinese own intellectual property right, and successful advancement of industrial demonstration projects and the increase of new coal-to-liquid investments, China will form a CTL capacity totalized to 1.6 million t/a by 2009, according to data from ASIACHEM.
   In addition to Shenhua Erdos direct CTL project already on-stream, three indirect CTL units of 160 000 t/a capacity each using a process developed by Shanxi Institute of Coal Chemistry, Chinese Acadamy of Sciences (ICC, CAS) and invested by Lu'An Group, Inner Mongolia Yitai Co., Ltd. and Shenhua respectively are expected to be started up in the first half of 2009. An additional indirect CTL project - a 50: 50 joint venture between Shenhua and Sasol - is now in the second stage feasibility study and predicted to start construction by the end of 2009.
    Furthermore, one million t/a indirect CTL plant to be built by Yanzhou Mining Group (Yankuang) in Yulin, Shaanxi province using a self-owned process achieved positive appraisal for its environment impact assessment report on December 11th, 2008 and is expected to gain new ground in this year.
    Sasol is the world's leading coal-to-liquid using the F-T synthesis technology. It has two production bases, capable of producing 7.2 million tons of oil products using coal as feedstock and producing extra 300 000 tons from natural gas.
   Sasol has proposed a 51:49 coal-to-oil joint venture plant with South Africa's state-run Industrial Development Corp (IDC). An initial feasibility study into the project is planned to be completed in March this year and production may begin in 2016.
   ASIACHEM has noticed that the time schedule of Sasol/IDC CTL project in SA is practically coincident with that of the 3.2 million t/a indirect CTL plant, a JV between China Shenhua and Sasol in Ningxia, China.