Celanese to construct industrial ethanol production facilities in China

Celanese Far East Limited, a subsidiary of Celanese Corporation, has signed letters of intent to construct and operate industrial ethanol production facilities in Nanjing, China, at the Nanjing Chemical Industrial Park and in Zhuhai, China, at the Gaolan Port Economic Zone. Pending project approvals, Celanese could begin industrial ethanol production within the next 30 months with an initial nameplate capacity of 400,000 tons per year per plant with an initial investment of approximately $300 million per plant. The company is pursuing approval at two locations to ensure its ability to effectively grow with future demand, according to the company. The projects will use Celanese’s newly developed advanced technology to produce industrial ethanol. This new process combines Celanese’s proprietary acetyl platform with advanced manufacturing technology to produce ethanol from hydrocarbon-sourced feedstocks. To meet future demand, Celanese’s technology also allows capacity at each facility to be more than doubled at significantly less than the original investment, the company said. Current demand for industrial ethanol in China is approximately three million tons annually and is expected to grow between eight percent and 10 percent per year.