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The Hohhot Petrochemical 1.2 million tons per year ethane‑to‑ethylene project is a planned petrochemical complex to be built in Ordos City, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. It is officially referred to in Chinese as 呼和浩特石化120万吨/年乙烷制乙烯项目 and is commonly described as an ethane‑to‑ethylene project associated with Hohhot Petrochemical.

The site is located in the Tuke Industrial Park within the Sulige Economic Development Zone, giving it direct access to natural gas production areas in the Ordos Basin, and the planned plant area is about 252 hectares, or 2.52 square kilometres.

The project has a planned nameplate ethylene capacity of 1.2 million tonnes per year. It is designed to use ethane as its primary feedstock, with ethane extracted from natural gas produced in surrounding gas fields in the Ordos Basin. This makes it part of PetroChina’s broader shift toward large ethane‑based crackers, similar in concept to the Lanzhou Changqing and Dushanzi Tarim ethane projects, but sited in Inner Mongolia to monetise local gas‑liquid resources.

Process technology for the cracker is expected to be PetroChina/CNPC’s proprietary ethane steam‑cracking technology developed by China Huanqiu Engineering Co., Ltd. (HQC). This technology forms part of CNPC’s large‑scale ethylene technology platform, which has been progressively deployed in recent ethane‑to‑ethylene projects. A distinguishing feature of the Ordos project is the planned integration of carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) technology from the design stage, positioning it as one of PetroChina’s first ethylene projects that explicitly incorporates CO₂ capture to support low‑carbon development goals.

The project comprises twelve main production units.

• Ethylene plant: 1.2 million tonnes per year capacity, in which cracked fuel oil, hydrogen and carbon dioxide will be produced as by-products
• Ther CO₂ will be directed to the CCUS system
• Full-density polyethylene (HDPE) plant: 2x 400,000 tonnes per year capacity, combined 800,000 tonnes per year capacity
• Polypropylene plant
• Ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA) plant
• Methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) plant
•  with the CO₂ directed to the CCUS system.

Supporting infrastructure includes auxiliary production facilities, in-plant utilities, an off-site dedicated railway line for raw material and product transportation, and a living base for workers. The project is being designed using a "Design + Construction" integrated approach targeting a 6-month design phase followed by a 24-month construction period, with the goal of synchronizing completion with the 20 billion cubic metre per year natural gas advanced treatment project in the Sulige gas field that will supply feedstock.

Timeline:

• Project preparations began in 2023, with Hohhot Petrochemical Branch establishing a dedicated preliminary work organization and engaging extensively with local governments in Ordos City and Wushen Banner.
• By mid-2023, the company had obtained more than 80 government communications and approvals covering development planning, environmental impact assessment, land delivery and relocation, and renewable energy quota allocations.
• A special project report meeting was held on 4 August 2023 to advance project approval and implementation work.
• From Oct 22-23, 2024, the "Pre-feasibility Study Report for the project successfully passed the group company's assessment.
• As of late 2024, the project remains in the preparation and approval phase, with construction yet to commence. Latest timeline: Based on information from April 2025, the project is scheduled to officially commence in June 2025 and is expected to be completed and put into operation in June 2028.

References

1. Sep 9, 2023. Another 1.2 million-tonne ethane-to-ethylene project announced! The two major oil companies ramp up their ethylene investments – what are the differences in their strategic layouts? World Exhibition Network
2. Sep 10, 2023. Total investment of RMB 24.332 billion: Latest progress on Hohhot Petrochemical's 1.2 million tonnes per annum ethane-to-ethylene project. Sohu
3. Oct 16, 2023. PetroChina to Add CCUS to New Ethane Cracker. Industrial Info Resources
4. Sina Finance. Apr 25, 2025. PetroChina announces public notice for its new 1.2 million-ton ethane-to-ethylene project, with a total investment of 24.5 billion yuan. Baidu
5. Prosperous fortune. Apr 26, 2025. PetroChina to invest 24.5 billion yuan in Ordos! A new 1.2 million-ton ethane-to-ethylene project will be built. Baidu