SIBUR-Sinopec's Amur GCC expects to produce first polyethylene in Q3 2026
The Amur Gas Chemical Complex (AGCC), which is 60% owned by Russian petrochemical group SIBUR and 40% by China's Sinopec, expects to produce its first polyethylene in the third quarter of 2026.
"By the end of this year we will achieve mechanical readiness on two units. These are fully built units at which we have already begun testing and trying out equipment without using feedstock. And next year we plan to arrive at production of commercial product, in the third quarter of next year," AGCC CEO Sergei Sergeyev told reporters, adding that the AGCC is now 76% ready.
The complex will start producing polypropylene in 2027 as previously planned, he said.
AGCC was supposed to be built with the involvement of European companies such as Linde and Technimont. Part of the equipment, including the pyrolysis unit, was built, but in 2022 these companies left the project. SIBUR and Sinopec decided to reconsider the strategy for implementing the project, redesigned it and replaced contractors and license holders for the polyethylene and polypropylene lines.
The project calls for producing 2.3 MMtpy of polyethylene and 400,000 tpy of polypropylene. The complex's construction is synchronized with the gradual ramp-up to full capacity at Gazprom's Amur Gas Processing Plant, which will supply the feedstock, ethane and liquefied petroleum gas.
The AGCC is now scheduled to reach mechanical readiness in 2026, two years later than planned under the previous construction schedule.
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