ExxonMobil to set up multibillion-dollar chemical facility in South China

US oil major ExxonMobil has made a final investment decision to proceed with a multibillion-dollar chemical complex in China to meet growing demand for performance chemical products in the country.

The chemical complex, located in the Daya Bay petrochemical industrial park in Huizhou, Guangdong province, will produce performance polymers used in packaging, automotives, agricultural and consumer products for hygiene and personal care, it said.

"Demand for performance polymers will continue to increase in China, and we're well-positioned to meet the needs of that growing market," said Karen McKee, president of ExxonMobil Chemical Co, a key division of ExxonMobil.

"We look forward to progressing this exciting project as we work to build a competitive growth platform in Daya Bay," McKee said.

An analyst said the facility will support progress toward China's national petrochemical development priorities, which include self-sufficiency, diversified feedstock sources and advancing new competitive technologies.

Luo Zuoxian, head of intelligence and research at the Sinopec Economics and Development Research Institute, said China's petrochemical industry is in need of high-end products, and the US oil major's investment decision to build a chemical complex will meet such demand in the country.

"As China has been upgrading industrial structure and improving consumption, it's necessary to push forward supply-side reform. As a major oil company on the global stage, ExxonMobil, with its advanced technologies in petrochemical and management experience, will not only benefit the energy company, but also transform Huizhou into a world-class, green petrochemical production base," Luo said.

BloombergNEF expects China to lead the global expansion in petrochemical capacity, seeing continuous growth out to 2050.

China remains an attractive market for international petrochemical giants, underpinned by its growth in per capita income as well as the increasing demand for petrochemicals, said Tang Sisi, an analyst at research firm BloombergNEF.

ExxonMobil said construction is underway on the greenfield project, which includes a flexible feed steam cracker, three performance polyethylene lines and two differentiated performance polypropylene lines. The steam cracker will have a nameplate capacity of approximately 1.6 million metric tons per year.

The project is expected to utilize advanced, environmentally friendly and mature proprietary production technologies to ensure construction of a green petrochemical complex in the region.

ExxonMobil has operated in China for more than a century. The company's current business interests include a presence in downstream, chemicals and liquefied natural gas. ExxonMobil is committed to being a good corporate citizen and supports community relations programs wherever it operates, the company said.