Air Products and Yankuang to build US$3.5bn syngas plant

AIR PRODUCTS has signed an investment cooperation agreement with Yankuang Group to build a US$3.5bn coal-to-syngas facility in Yulin City, China.

Under the terms of the deal, Shaanxi Future Energy Group (SFEC), a subsidiary of Yankuang, and Air Products will form a joint venture, majority controlled by Air Products, to build, own and operate the plant. The air separation, gasification and syngas clean-up system will supply 40,000 t/d of oxygen and 2.5m normal m³/h of syngas to SFEC’s production plant for fuel and chemicals. In return, SFEC will provide coal, steam and power to the joint venture plant.

Air Products already supplies 12,000 t/d of oxygen to SFEC’s existing fuel and chemicals plant at Yulin. The new, second phase will result in one of the largest coal-to-fuel and chemicals complexes in China, producing 4m t/y of fuel and chemicals.

The deal was signed in the presence of US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. It is one of a number signed as part of Trump’s state visit to China, which have also included a five-way agreement to develop Alaskan LNG.

“We look forward to further extending our excellent partnership with Air Products, leveraging their technology, reliability and expertise to enable us to produce even more high-quality fuel and chemical products that drive growth and support sustainable development,” said Yangkuang Group chairman Li Xiyong.

The facility is expected to come onstream in 2021.