Brother Industries Help Stimulate Petrochemical Industry   

(Continued Page 6 of Issue No.29)  
The steady growth of automobile production and sales and the increased activity in vehicle research and development will definitely need a large number of high-quality plastic car fittings. At the same time, high oil prices will drive automakers to use more plastics to reduce cars' body weight and raise the fuel efficiency of vehicles and to make vehicles become lighter and more energy-saving. The implementation of the adjustment and stimulation program will greatly motivate the plastic industry to elevate its level of independent innovation, improve its product quality, enhance the core competitiveness of auxiliary automotive products, reduce costs and increase the recycling and utilization of waste plastics.
    With regard to car coatings, the healthy development of the automobile industry can improve the profit of the coatings industry. In recent years, the car coatings sector has grown rapidly and now enjoys production capacity of about 200 000 t/a.

4. The electronic and information industry promotes the progress of the petrochemical industry

The electronic and information industry and the petrochemical industry increasingly depend on each other. On one hand, the applications in IT have accelerated the rapid development of the petrochemical industry; on the other hand, the development of the electronics and information industry itself has also provided a broad market for the petrochemical industry.
    The petrochemical industry has a very long industrial chain, extending from oil exploration to the production, transportation and processing of oil and petrochemicals and finally to the sales of the products. This process spans three sectors - oil extraction, manufacturing and circulation. If Chinese petrochemical enterprises want to be successful in achieving their strategic objectives in today's international market competition, they need the support of the information technology.
   At the same time, the electronic and information industry itself has also provided development opportunities and a vast market to advanced petrochemical materials. Computers, digital audio and video products and related components, including software, integrated circuits, flat panel displays and communications equipment, all depend heavily on the development of advanced petrochemical materials. The solar photovoltaic industry, for example, was built on the basis of monocrystalline silicon in the 1990s, but in the 21st century, the polycrystalline silicon cells account for more than 55% of solar cells, making polycrystalline silicon the major raw material of solar cells. With the rapid development of the solar photovoltaic industry, many new investors now choose to develop thin-film photovoltaic solar cells.
   In addition, the new fluorine-silicon material needed by the optoelectronic industry is listed as one of the six preferred development fields in China's 11th Five-year Chemical Industry and Technology Development Program. For example, electronic-grade phenolic resin is mainly used as an electronic and information material and an electrical insulation material. In recent years, the annual output of phenolic resin, a type of traditional synthetic resin, has still been increasing every year. According to statistics, the demand of China's electric and electronic industries for phenolic resin is growing at an annual rate of between 15% and 20% and cannot be fully met yet. In particular, in recent years, the market, production technology and product performance of electronic-grade phenolic resin have changed dramatically. A number of new materials have initially replaced traditional materials in the photovoltaic industry.

5. The logistics industry and the petrochemical industry interact

The logistics industry is a composite service industry which integrates transport, warehousing, freight-forwarding and information sectors.
   Most petroleum and chemical products are bulk products, so in the total cost structure of petroleum and chemical companies, logistics costs account for a large share. The introduction and implementation of the Stimulus and Adjustment Program of the Logistics Industry will certainly enhance logistics efficiency and reduce logistics costs, thus raising the competitiveness of China's petroleum and chemical industry.
   Logistics facilities related to the petroleum and chemical industry include oil and gas pipelines; transportation facilities like railways, highways and waterways; and petrochemical terminals, storage tanks and warehouses. Producers of oil, natural gas and refined oil mainly rely on oil and gas pipelines for transport. At present, the total length of oil and gas pipelines built in China is about 60 000 km, of which 17 000 km are crude oil pipelines, 12 000 km are refined oil pipelines and 31 000 km are natural gas pipelines. Other petrochemicals and chemicals are mainly transported by train, truck and ship. The import and export of petroleum, petrochemicals and chemicals largely depend on marine transport.
   In recent years, in order to meet the need for imported petroleum, petrochemicals and chemicals, China has accelerated the construction of large-scale petrochemical terminals, including the Dalian port and the Tianjin port in the Bohai Bay, the Qingdao port in the Yellow Sea, the Ningbo port and the Zhoushan port in the Yangtze River Delta and ports in Quanzhou, Huizhou, Maoming and Zhanjiang in the Pan-Pearl River Delta. With the construction of large-scale petrochemical terminals, China has built a number of auxiliary storage and transportation facilities and now has a total storage capacity of about 45 million cubic meters.
   The main purpose of the adjustment and stimulation program of the logistics industry is to promote the development of logistics in key fields, strengthen the construction of logistics facilities for oil, coal, important minerals and related products, establish a logistics system for oil, coal and important minerals, strengthen the tracking and monitoring of hazardous-chemicals logistics and standardize the safety management of hazardous-chemicals logistics.
   To this end, China will implement a series of important logistics measures. First, strengthen the construction of oil and gas terminals and transportation pipeline networks, and enhance oil and gas logistics capabilities. Second, support the development of logistics and distribution centers for farming materials and rural consumer goods. Third, encourage and promote the separation of logistics from the manufacturing sector and the outsourcing of manufacturing logistics, support manufacturing companies in transforming their existing business processes and promote the outsourcing of their logistics business to improve their core competitiveness. Fourth, foster a number of third-party logistics companies who adapt to the logistics needs of modern manufacturing enterprises, and enhance the ability and level of the logistics industry to serve manufacturing enterprises. In addition, China will make up related policies to encourage the joint development of the manufacturing industry and the logistics industry and set up a number of demonstration projects and key projects to promote the organic integration and joint development of modern manufacturing and logistics.
   The stimulation of the logistics industry can both provide better services and support to oil and chemical manufacturers, and lift logistics operations in the petroleum and chemical industry to a new level.

6. Coordinating the development of new petrochemical capacity with the localization of industrial-equipment manufacturing

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