Global ethylene production capacity is set to surge from 144.9 million mt in 2010 to 173.2 million mt in 2016, Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said Tuesday.
The increase in ethylene production capacity is expected to follow a surge in demand for ethylene derivatives such as polyethylene and monoethylene glycol.
The growth in Asian ethylene capacity will top global growth, as it is expected to expand by 37% to 62.8 million mt in 2016 from 45.8 million mt in 2010. India and China will lead the pack, while Japan and Taiwan are expected to see a dip in total production capacity.
The Americas will see ethylene production capacity growing by 16% to 45.1 million mt in 2016 from 38.9 million mt in 2010, largely due to new ethylene plants in the US in the wake of the shale gas boom, which will provide competitively priced feedstock.
Following is a breakdown of global production capacity of ethylene for 2010 and the forecast for 2016, as announced by METI:
2016 2010 Change (%) ASEAN 11.9 9.4 27 China 24.3 13.4 81 Japan 7.6 7.7 -1 S Korea 8.2 7.7 6 Taiwan 3.9 4.1 -5 India 6.9 3.7 86 Total Asia 62.8 45.8 37 Middle East 29.1 26.1 11 W Europe 24.2 24.5 -1 Americas 45.1 38.9 16 Total World 173.2 144.9 20
(Unit: Million mt. Source: METI)
