Soaring BPA Output Accommodated by Huge Demand

By Zhang Guihua, Research Institute of PetroChina Jilin Petrochemical Company

1. Growing Capacity
China’s bisphenol A (BPA) annual capacity jumped from 50 000 tons in 2005 to 396 000 tons in 2008, and then to 636 000 tons in 2012. The six major domestic producers include Bayer (Shanghai) Polymer Co., Ltd, Sinopec Mitsubishi Chemical Polycarbonate (Beijing) Co., Ltd and Shanghai Sinopec Mitsui Chemicals Co., Ltd.
   More than half of domestic BPA capacity is operated by Bayer (Shanghai) Polymer Co., Ltd and Shanghai Sinopec Mitsui Chemicals Co., Ltd, both located in Shanghai, China’s BPA production center. Nantong Xingchen Synthetic Material Co., Ltd started up a 90 000 t/a BPA unit with proprietary technology in 2010.
   Promoted by downstream markets like polycarbonate and epoxy resin enterprises, China’s demand for BPA increased continually. Enterprises at home and abroad that are attracted by China’s great potential intend either to construct new BPA units or to expand existing ones.
   If projects mentioned in table 2 are put into operation on schedule, China’s BPA capacity will increase 565 000 tons, reaching 1.20 million tons in 2015.

2. Relying on Imports
China produced 45 000 tons of BPA in 2006, growing to 157 000 tons in 2009, 292 000 tons in 2010 and to 400 000 tons in 2011, with the self-sufficiency rate rising from 11.2% in 2006 to 41.0% in 2011. However, domestic supply is still far lower than demand, which is significantly boosted by epoxy resin and polycarbonate industries, making import volume jump to 580 000 tons in 2011 from 420 000 tons in 2008.
   Bayer (Shanghai) Polymer Co., Ltd produces BPA for its polycarbonate production; Sinopec Mitsubishi Chemical Polycarbonate (Beijing) Co., Ltd, for its 60 000 t/a polycarbonate unit and external supply; Shanghai Sinopec Mitsui Chemicals Co., Ltd, polycarbonate unit of Jiaxing Diren Company and external supply; Nantong Xingchen Synthetic Material Co., Ltd, epoxy resin production; Huizhou Chung Shun Chemical Co., Ltd, 50 000 t/a epoxy resin unit.
   China’s demand for BPA is predicted to exceed capacity in 2015 even if the new 565 000 t/a capacity is fully realized. Therefore, import volume will keep its upward momentum.

3. Advantages of Industry Chain
China’s BPA is mainly used in polycarbonates, epoxy resins, fire retardants, unsaturated polyester resins, polyacrylic esters, polyetherimide and polysulfone resins. More than 90% are consumed by polycarbonate and epoxy resin.
   More foreign enterprises are establishing epoxy resin plants in China, bringing ample opportunities for China’s BPA industry. With rapid development, China’s epoxy resin industry boasted capacity of more than 1.5 million t/a in 2010, when the output exceeded 1.3 million tons. Blocked by raw materials of BPA, domestic epoxy resin enterprises once developed slowly and could hardly make breakthrough in high-purity products. But now things have been changed. Epoxy resin products are exported in large quantity, meeting world’s demand to make high-end goods like aerospace products and electronics.
   China’s fast-growing economy greatly propelled polycarbonate consumption. Polycarbonate import reached 1.26 million tons in 2010 and 1.22 million tons in 2011. Increasing demand and profits attracted companies from home and abroad to establish new plants or expand current units. Domestic polycarbonate demand growth is estimated to continue at around 9% in the next few years. With market development, China’s BPA consumption structure will also be changed, reflected in that polycarbonate will account for more of the consumption.    

Table 1    China’s Main BPA Producers in 2012    (kt/a)
Producers    Capacity    Remarks
Bayer (Shanghai) Polymer Co., Ltd    210    Phase I 110 000 t/a project started up in 2006; phase II 100 000 t/a project started up in 2007

Sinopec Mitsubishi Chemical Polycarbonate (Beijing) Co., Ltd    150    Started up in 2011
Shanghai Sinopec Mitsui Chemicals Co., Ltd    120    Started up at the end of 2008
Nantong Xingchen Synthetic Material Co., Ltd    90    Started up in 2010
Wuxi Resin Factory of BlueStar New Chemical Material Co., Ltd
    41     
Huizhou Chung Shun Chemical Co., Ltd (Guangdong Branch of Kingboard Chemical Holdings Ltd)    25    Started up in 2007
Total    636


Table 2     China’s New BPA Capacity, 2013-2015    (kt/a)
Company    Location    New Capacity    Startup
Changchun Chemical Co., Ltd    Changshou, Jiangsu    135    2013
Nanya Plastics Corporation    Ningbo, Zhejiang    130    2013
Shanghai Sinopec Mitsui     Caojing, Shanghai    150    2015
Chemicals Co., Ltd
Wuxi Resin Factory of BlueStar     Wuxi, Jiangsu    150    2015
New Chemical Material Co., Ltd
Total        565

Table 3      China’s BPA Supply and Demand, 2004-2011     (kt)
Year    Output    Import    Export    Apparent Consumption    Self-sufficiency Rate/%
2004    42    183    12    213    19.7
2005    40    279    9    310    12.9
2006    45    360    4    401    11.2
2007    131    461    2    590    22.2
2008    104    420    1    523    19.9
2009    157    514    5    666    23.6
2010    292    439    7    724    40.3
2011    400    581    6    975    41.0