World’s first coal-to-oil mass converter due to start operation this year

Towering above the sweeping grasslands of Erdos, in north China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, two 60-meter-high cylindrical structures stand out against the skyline.

The structures — reactors for liquefying coal — are part of a project to mass produce desperately needed fuel oils from China’s rich coal resources.
More than 10,000 workers from across China are constructing the massive project, the first industrial facility in Ejin Horo Banner.

“The project is in its final stage of construction and will start production late in the year,” said Wang Yulong, deputy manager in charge of the coal liquefying arm of the Liquefied Coal Oil Company of Shenhua Group Corporation Limited, the country’s top coal producer.

The facility in Erdos will produce mostly diesel oil, plus liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), naphtha (a volatile, flammable liquid hydrocarbon mixture), and hydroxybenzene.

On completion, it will be the largest facility in the world producing liquids from coal using a technology known as direct gasification.

People’s Daily