Sinopec suspending plans to build US$3.1B ethylene plant in Qingdao, China, amid rising US competition in the sector, growing resistance to oil and gas plants over environmental scares, according to Reuters

Elyse Blye

LONDON , April 30, 2014 (Business Monitor International) – Chinese oil and gas company Sinopec has held up its plans to build an USD3.1bn ethylene plant in Qingdao amid rising US competition in the sector and growing resistance to oil and gas plants over environmental scares, reports Reuters. According to industry experts, US shale gas crackers can produce ethylene at less than 50% the cost of the typically naphtha-fed crackers in Asia. The experts also feel that in the next five to 10 years up to 12 gas-based plants are expected to commence operations in the US, including some built by Asian firms such as Formosa Petrochemical.

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