Insight
How will China's polyethylene industry tackle overcapacity
Report summary
After massive capacity addition, China's polyethylene industry is expected to muddle through a slowdown with the escalating competition. It is observed that China's domestic operators are actively investing in both EVA and mLLDPE sectors, which are regarded as high-value polyethylene derivatives. The question remains, after another round of investment rally toward both high-end sub-markets, will the growth from those niche markets provide positive return?
Table of contents
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Executive summary
- Production of specialised PE grades in China is no longer the obvious pivot for producers
- Background
- EVA
- mLLDPE
-
China polyethylene muddling through a slowdown with escalating competition
- With 22 Mt of PE capacity set to be added from 2023 to 2030, China’s operating rate will fall
-
Capacity growth in specialty PE grades is faster than in commodity grades
- Producers are turning to high-end PE derivatives – mLLDPE, POE and EVA – to secure higher margins. EVA is forecast to have the highest capacity growth.
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EVA has experienced the strongest growth since 2018
- EVA demand has more than doubled over the past six years
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Surging demand from China’s photovoltaic industry has induced EVA demand hike
- While the first half of 2020s is seeing remarkable PV growth, we forecast negative production growth from 2025
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Global PV module growth is at risk of entering plateau from 2024
- While first half of 2020s is seeing remarkable PV growth, we forecast negative production growth from 2025
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China EVA industry is facing sharply declining operating rates from 2025
- The average operating rate of Chinese EVA production is forecast to decline to 55% by 2027
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China mLLDPE highly relies on imports, with limited improvement on domestic production
- mLLDPE is the second largest category among all PE specialty derivatives in China, next to EVA
- China Domestic mLLDPE Supply Outlook
- China mLLDPE is estimated to have 2.1% CAGR growth till 2030
Tables and charts
This report includes 8 images and tables including:
- China mLLDPE Supply & Demand Outlook
- China polyethylene supply outlook 2018-2030
- China polyethylene capacity growth by category
- China EVA Supply & Demand Outlook 2018 to 2023
- China EVA demand segmentation
- Global module production forecast by region
- China EVA supply and demand growth
- China mLLDPE Supply & Demand Outlook
What's included
This report contains:
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