Butanone Market in China in 2015

By Cui Ming, Research Institute of Sinopec Yanshan Petrochemical Co., Ltd.

1. Production

At the end of 2015, China had 507 kt/a of butanone capacity. Production units are distributed mainly in regions with many refineries and rich C4 resources, such as Northeast China, East China and Northwest China. Around 53.25% of the total capacity is in East China. Around 21.10% is in Northeast China. Northwest China has around 19.72%. Shandong Qixiang Tengda Chemical Co., Ltd. is the biggest producer, with 160 kt/a capacity, accounting for around 31.56% of the national total. PetroChina Lanzhou Petrochemical Co., Ltd. comes next, with 60 kt/a, or 11.83%. Other producers include China BlueStar (Group) Heilongjiang Petrochemical Plant (12 kt/a), PetroChina Fushun Petrochemical Co., Ltd. (55 kt/a), BlueStar Harbin Petrochemical Co., Ltd. (40 kt/a), Xinjiang Tianli High-Tech Co., Ltd. (40 kt/a), Hebei Zhongjie Petrochemical Group Co., Ltd. (30 kt/a), Jiangsu Taizhou Petrochemical General Plant (30 kt/a), Ningbo Haiyue New Material Co., Ltd. (40 kt/a) and Shandong Dongming Lishu Chemical Co., Ltd. (40 kt/a).


Table 1    Export of butanone from China, 2013-2015

2013    2014    2015
Volume (kt)    Value (US$ million)    Volume (kt)    Value (US$ million)    Volume (kt)    Value (US$ million)
64.1    79.83    92.8    132.14    90.9    95.91


2. Import and export

The import volume has declined since 2005. It was 121.0 kt in 2005 and came down to 29.8 kt in 2010. The import volume in 2010 was down 31.34% from the previous year. China turned from a net butanone importer to a net exporter in 2010. The net export amount was 11.8 kt in 2010 and reached 96.0 kt in 2012. It was 89.1 kt in 2015, a drop of around 1.87% from the previous year. Table 1 shows the export of butanone from China during 2013-2015.
In 2015, China exported butanone mainly to Korea, the United States, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines. The combined amounts exported to these destinations was 58.3 kt, accounting for around 64.14% of the total and being around 12.86% lower than the 66.9 kt in 2014. The amount exported to Korea accounted for around 25.41% of the total and was around 30.42% lower than in the previous year. The amount exported to the United States accounted for around 12.32% of the total and was around 33.33% higher than in the previous year. The amount exported to Indonesia accounted for around 12.32% of the total and was around 34.12% lower than in the previous year. The amount exported to Vietnam accounted for around 6.49% of the total and was around 37.21% higher than in the previous year. The amount exported to the Philippines accounted for around 7.59% of the total and was around 72.50% higher than in the previous year. Table 2 shows China’s major export destinations for butanone in 2015.

3. Consumption

The apparent consumption of butanone in China has hardly changed in recent years. It was 269.8 kt in 2005 and reached 308.2 kt in 2010, an increase of around 1.38% over the previous year. Apparent consumption was 290.9 kt in 2015, a drop of around 5.92% from the previous year.
Butanone is an environment-friendly solvent used mainly in coatings and adhesives such as polyurethane coatings, epoxy resin coatings, acrylate coatings and polyurethane adhesives. It is also the best substitute for other solvents such as benzene, formaldehyde and acetone. The consumption pattern in 2015 was around 47.8% for making coatings, around 13.7% for artificial leather, around 8.1% for lube oil dewaxing, around 21.7% for adhesives, around 5.1% for inks and around 3.6% for other applications (including magnetic tapes, medicines, electronics and chemical intermediates). As requirements for environmental protection are raised, the application of butanone to replace other solvents is hoped to grow. It is expected that the demand for butanone in China will reach 350-360 kt in 2020. Coatings and adhesives will remain the two most important sectors consuming butanone domestically.
Consumption is concentrated mainly in South China and East China, which together account for around 85% of the total.


Table 2    China’s major export destinations for butanone in 2015

Export destination    Export volume (kt)    Proportion (%)    Export value (US$ million)    Proportion (%)
Korea    23.1    25.41    21.66    22.58
USA    11.2    12.32    15.27    15.92
Indonesia    11.2    12.32    10.75    11.21
Vietnam    5.9    6.49    5.47    5.71
Philippines    6.9    7.59    7.82    8.16
Singapore    1.4    1.54    1.41    1.47
Australia    1.8    1.98    1.77    1.86
Taiwan province    2.9    3.19    2.94    3.07
India    3.5    3.85    3.50    3.65
Thailand    1.6    1.76    1.54    1.61
Turkey    2.3    2.53    2.51    2.61
Netherlands    0.7    0.77    0.69    0.72
Belgium    1.8    1.98    1.95    2.03
Malaysia    1.8    1.98    2.03    2.12
Mexico    0.7    0.77    0.78    0.81
Chile    1.1    1.21    1.16    1.21
Canada    1.5    1.65    1.78    1.86
Russia    1.1    1.21    1.15    1.19
Brazil    0.7    0.77    0.70    0.73
Others    9.7    10.68    11.01    11.48
Total    90.9    100.00    95.91    100.00



4. Market price

In 2015, the butanone market in China presented an overall trend of going up first, coming down later, going up again and coming down again. The market price was RMB6 740/t in January, increased to the year’s peak of RMB7 420/t in March and then dropped steadily to the year’s lowest of RMB5 350/t in August. It rose again to RMB6 060/t in October and then fell again to RMB5 450/t in December. The market price of butanone continued to decline in 2016. It was RMB5 230/t in January and dropped to RMB4 860/t in February. Due to slack demand and the sustained low price of raw materials, the market price will continue to fluctuate for a considerable period, but only narrowly.                                              ?

Source:《Fine and Specialty Chemicals》