New plastics plant to ease China's import needs

A plant with an annual output of over 1.2 million metric tons of multi-component copolymerized polypropylene was put into operation on Thursday in Fuzhou, Fujian province. It is said to be the world's largest factory for producing the material, according to Zhongjing Petrochemical Group Co.

Polypropylene is a kind of plastic used in everything from carpet to food containers, product packaging and parts for many sectors, including the automotive industry.

With the company's existing capacity, Fujian will become the largest production base for producing polypropylene, with a total annual output of 2.2 million tons.

The manufacturer said the material has "excellent properties", including impact resistance, "making it suitable for high-end fields like automotive parts, home appliance casings and some high-quality daily necessities," said Huang Min, vice-manager of the company's production technology department.

It has been widely applied in multiple fields including machinery, automobile, electronic appliances, construction and textiles.

However, China relies heavily on imports as for high-end polypropylene. With an investment of 4 billion yuan ($573.6 million), the company is expected to reach an annual output value of 15 billion yuan and will help reduce related imports.