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Article: Severe challenges for the methanol sector in China.(Organics)
- Article from:
- China Chemical Reporter
- Article date:
- May 16, 2009
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2009 China National Chemical Information Center. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Uneconomic expansion of capacity
China has rapidly expanded its capacity to produce methanol in recent years, reaching 20.924 million t/a at the end of 2008. Output was 11.263 million tons in 2008, an increase of 6.4% over 2007. The import volume was 1.434 million tons, an increase of 69.7%. The export volume was 368 000 tons, a drop of 34.6%. The apparent consumption was 12.329 million tons, an increase of 11.6%.
The latest statistical data show that the total capacity of new methanol projects that can start production before the end of 2010 is 8.61 million t/a. It is therefore expected that domestic capacity will at least reach 29.50 million t/a at the ...