MOSCOW (MRC) - Uzbekistan plans to launch in the fourth quarter of 2023 the production of polymers in a complex with MTO technology (from methanol to olefins), a representative of the country's Ministry of Energy said at the forum "Gas Chemical Complex MTO: Technologies of New Uzbekistan".
The complex with a capacity of 720,000 tonnes of polymers per year will be located in the center of the free economic zone (FEZ) in Karakul, Bukhara region.
The USD2.5 billion project is expected to be commissioned in the fourth quarter of 2023 and will provide the Uzbek industry with olefinic hydrocarbons. The gas chemical complex is designed for processing local raw materials based on a licensed technological process for converting methanol into olefins, which has no analogues in the CIS region.
More than 70% of the plant's products will be sold on the domestic market, which will allow Uzbekistan's industry to meet domestic demand, as well as export various raw materials to the CIS countries, China, Turkey and the countries of Southeast Asia.
Based on the technology of the Chemtex Global Corporation (USA), the plant will produce polyethylene terephthalate (PET). PET is currently fully imported to Uzbekistan. The monoethylene glycol used for PET production will be produced using the technology of Scientific Design Company Inc. (USA).
The production of low-pressure polyethylene (LDPE) will also be launched for the first time in the Republic on the equipment and technology of Versalis (Italy) with the use of a tubular reactor under ultra-high pressure. This technology allows one unit to consistently produce two types of end products - LDPE and ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA).
Polypropylene production will be carried out in cooperation with W. R. Grace & Co. (USA), a world leader in this field.
The fact that Uzbekistan intends to build a new gas chemical complex (GCC) in the coming years, which will become the basis of the largest technological cluster in the region, became known in 2018.
According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 1,868,160 tonnes in the first nine months of 2021, up by 18% year on year. Shipments of all grades of ethylene polymers increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 1,138,510 tonnes in January-September 2021, up by 30% year on year. Supply of propylene homopolymer (homopolymer PP) and block-copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) increased, whereas supply of injection moulding statistical copolymers of propylene (PP random copolymers) decreased significantly.
MRC