The corona crisis, especially the blockade measures taken by many governments, has dealt a heavy blow to China's chemical industry. However, in 2019, even before corona, sales of many of China's top companies have declined. But there are exceptions, as our latest top 10 list shows in 2019.

Beijing / China - five of the world's top 50 chemical companies are from the people's Republic of China, one more than last year, according to China Huagong daily, the China Chemical daily. By contrast, 10 are from the United States, 8 from Japan, 6 from Germany and 4 from South Korea.

The following is a brief introduction of the top three chemical companies in China:

1. Sinopec

Sales: 61.3 billion US dollars (51.7 billion euro)

249142 employees

CEO: Zhang Yuzhou

Zhang Yuzhou, a clean coal technology expert, has held several government positions and has been in charge of the largest state-owned enterprise in China's coal industry since January 2020. Sinopec, headquartered in Beijing, is China's largest producer of oil and petrochemicals. It is also the world's largest refiner and the third largest chemical company, complying with global standards. The whole Sinopec Group ranks second among the top 500 in the world in 2019.

The company's products include various petrochemical products, including synthetic resins, plastic fibers, synthetic monomers and polymers, various chemical intermediates, synthetic plastics and fertilizers. Sinopec's sales fell 7% in 2019, and the group also faced difficulties in the first quarter of 2020 due to China's nationwide blockade. However, as early as the second quarter, China did not have a nationwide blockade and its financial situation has recovered.

2. PetroChina

Sales: 22 billion US dollars (19 billion euros)

506000 employees

CEO: Dai Houliang

Dai Houliang became the chairman of CNPC in January 2020. PetroChina is a listed subsidiary of China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC). The headquarters of the company is located in Beijing. The company is actively engaged in the production and processing of crude oil and natural gas, the production and sales of oil and natural gas products, and the production of various petrochemical products.

There are too many websites to list here. But highlights include the Liaoyang Petrochemical refinery project, one of the group's seven refineries with an annual capacity of more than 10 million tons. Ningxia Petrochemical, Karamay Petrochemical, Jinzhou Petrochemical and other major projects. Fushun Petrochemical's refining base (10 million tons / year) and related ethylene plant (1 million tons / year) are also worthy of attention.

In 2019, even before the corona crisis, the group's sales plummeted 4% and profits reached 56%. PetroChina is not deterred at all. It is investing in more and more new large-scale plants, including a plant to produce ethylene from ethane.

3. Hengli petrochemical

Sales: 15 billion US dollars (13 billion euro)

81350 employees

CEO: Chen Jianhua

Hengli Petrochemical Co., Ltd. is located in Dalian, a coastal city in China. The group is active in petroleum refining, petrochemical products, aromatic hydrocarbons, PTA, polyester process yarn, engineering plastics and other fields. The largest factories are located in Suzhou, Dalian, Suqian, Nantong and Yingkou.

In 2019, sales of Hengli Petrochemical increased by about two-thirds, not through acquisitions or mergers and acquisitions, but through the opening of proprietary production facilities. For example, in 2019, a new plant with an annual output of 4 million tons of crude oil to produce p-xylene will be put into operation. This year, the chemical company is expected to grow further, with a new ethylene cracker and a new plant producing pure terephthalic acid (PTA) in the pipeline.

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