China's Yantai Wanhua starts up propane dehydrogenation plant, expects on-spec propylene in 2-3 days: source

Singapore (Platts)–14 Aug 2015 437 am EDT/837 GMT

China's Yantai Wanhua Chemical has started up its new propane dehydrogenation, or PDH, plant in Shandong and expects to produce propylene that meets specifications within two to three days, a source familiar with the matter said Friday.

"The plant has just started operations," the source said. "There is no on-specs propylene now, and that will come these two or three days."

The plant had been on trial runs and underwent heating processes in recent weeks, while the operators have been balancing the power supply needs of the individual units at the large complex, the source had said.

Ahead of the startup, Yantai had taken delivery of around four 44,000-mt mixed LPG cargoes since mid-June.

The plant startup had been delayed a few times.

It was initially scheduled to start around the end of March or April, and had begun feeding in pressurized LPG early this year. But commercial production was delayed because the jetty attached to the plant had not received local government approval.

The approval was later given and it was then due to start end-July.

Yantai Wanhua's PDH plant is the biggest in China, with a propylene production capacity of 750,000 mt/year, and can use up to 900,000 mt/year of propane and 600,000 mt/year of butane as feedstock.

–Ramthan Hussain, ramthan.hussain@platts.com
–Edited by Irene Tang, irene.tang@platts.com

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