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Sinopec Anqing Petrochemical (Anhui) Fully Upgraded in 2023: Transformation from Fuel-Type Refinery to Chemical-Oriented Refinery

Quick Overview

Sinopec Anqing Petrochemical is a wholly-owned extra-large integrated refining and petrochemical subsidiary of Sinopec, founded in 1974 on the north bank of the Yangtze River in Anqing, Anhui Province. The commissioning of the RTC heavy oil catalytic cracking unit in 2023 marked its full shift from a fuel-type refinery to a chemical-oriented refinery, forming a complete industrial cluster featuring 8 million tons/year refining capacity, C1 chemical industry and chemical fiber integration. The enterprise concentrates on high-end chemical products and new materials, delivering profitability higher than the industrial average. Going forward, it will center on high-end upgrading, green low-carbon development and digital intelligence to steadily improve profit quality. Full detailed analysis is provided below.

1. Enterprise Profile: Cornerstone of Energy Supply Along the Yangtze River

Sinopec Anqing Branch (Sinopec Anqing Petrochemical for short, jointly referring to Sinopec Anqing Petrochemical Co., Ltd. and Sinopec Asset Management Anqing Branch) broke ground in July 1974 as a national strategic project designed to guarantee food and clothing supply for hundreds of millions of Chinese people.

Over more than 50 years of development, it has grown into a giant integrated enterprise covering petroleum refining, chemical manufacturing, chemical fiber production and cogeneration of heat and power, with annual operating revenue exceeding RMB 50 billion and annual profit and tax surpassing RMB 10 billion. Its cumulative tax contribution has exceeded RMB 1310 billion. Key operational metrics:

For two consecutive years, it has ranked No.1 in the Top 10 Tax Contributors among state-controlled enterprises in Anhui Province. It is the largest petrochemical enterprise in Anhui and a critical supplier of chemical raw materials for East China.

2. Core Product Portfolio: High-End Positioning to Build Solid Profit Pillars

Supported by its integrated platform of 8 million tons/year refining, C1 chemicals and chemical fibers, Anqing Petrochemical focuses on high value-added products. It avoids homogeneous competition in general chemical goods and builds differentiated competitive edges, with high-end products serving as its core profit driver.

2.1 Refining Segment Core Products

  1. High-Grade Petroleum Coke (Power Battery-Grade Coke) Targeting the new energy material sector, the brand "Anqing Coke" holds a solid market position in high-end anode material markets after full-process process optimization. It acts as a stable profit anchor for the whole company. From January to November 2025, its sales volume reached 227,300 tons, with the average settlement price rising by more than 40% year-on-year and making remarkable contributions to total earnings.
  2. Propylene Supported by the 3 million tons/year RTC heavy oil catalytic cracking unit, propylene output remains stable with flexible production mode adjustment. The large annual propylene output provides essential raw materials for downstream chemical production and stands as a core output of the "refining reduction & chemical expansion" strategy.
  3. Jet Fuel Its jet fuel fully covers all civil airports across Anhui Province, securing stable regional aviation energy supply and serving as a key regional energy guarantee product.

2.2 C1 Chemical Segment Core Products

  1. Acrylonitrile With an annual production capacity of 210,000 tons, it operates a major acrylonitrile production base in East China. Its products feed downstream engineering plastics, coatings and other sectors, sustaining stable industrial chain demand and sound profitability.
  2. Liquid Ammonia Synergized by the SE Oriental Furnace and existing Shell pulverized coal gasification units, its annual liquid ammonia capacity has exceeded 480,000 tons. It supplies stable hydrogen and nitrogen sources for downstream units including acrylonitrile while conducting external sales simultaneously, realizing dual benefits from internal circular supply and external revenue generation.

2.3 Chemical Fiber Segment Core Products

Flat Acrylic Fiber The company owns an annual acrylic fiber capacity of 70,000 tons, realizing serialized full-spec production ranging from 3D to 25D. In January 2025, the newly developed 25D flat acrylic fiber, co-developed with Donghua University, rolled off the production line and realized import substitution. Targeting the high-end artificial faux fur market, it boasts substantially higher added value than ordinary acrylic fiber products.

3. Profitability Analysis: Outperforming Industrial Average via High-End Layout

3.1 Core Drivers of Strong Profitability

Anqing Petrochemical achieves steady profit growth thanks to high-end product mix optimization, full industrial chain integration and refined cost control, effectively resisting industry-wide oversupply and fierce homogeneous competition (35% of domestic petrochemical products suffered losses, while over 60% saw year-on-year profit margin declines). Three core advantages are summarized as follows:

  1. Profit Boost from High-End Products High-end products including power battery-grade coke, flat acrylic fiber and acrylonitrile enjoy strong pricing power backed by differentiated advantages and import substitution capacity, delivering far higher profit margins than the industry average. The 40% year-on-year price hike of power battery coke becomes the primary growth engine for earnings expansion.
  2. Cost Reduction via Industrial Chain Integration The full synergized refining-chemical-fiber industrial chain realizes internal mutual supply of over 80% raw materials and finished goods, cutting external procurement and logistics costs significantly. The launch of the SE Oriental Furnace eliminates long-term stable operation bottlenecks of production units and reduces ammonia consumption per ton. In addition, three photovoltaic power generation projects and waste heat recovery power units supply more than 8.2 million kWh of clean power annually, turning waste heat into usable energy and continuously slashing energy expenditure.
  3. Optimized Capacity Utilization & Product Mix The RTC unit supports flexible production scheduling to adjust the output ratio of chemical feedstock versus gasoline according to market fluctuations, avoiding overcapacity risks of low value-added gasoline and diesel products and lifting overall capacity utilization and profit efficiency. Continuous optimization of full-process production parameters further unlocks profit potential.

3.2 Profit Scale & Margin Level

As a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sinopec, its standalone gross profit margin and net profit margin are not publicly disclosed and consolidated into the group financial statements. Nevertheless, operating data and industrial comparison confirm its outstanding profit performance:

  1. Stable profit scale: Annual revenue exceeds RMB 50 billion, annual profit and tax tops RMB 10 billion, and cumulative tax payment exceeds RMB 1310 billion. It has retained the first place in Anhui provincial state-owned holding enterprise tax rankings for two consecutive years with extremely stable earnings.
  2. Superior profit margin: Benefiting from high-end product layout and rigorous cost management, its profit margin beats the industrial average considerably. The profit margin of its high-end product segment is estimated to be 10–15 percentage points above the sector average, placing the enterprise in the upper-middle tier of the national refining and chemical industry.
  3. Upward profit trend: With full load operation of the SE Oriental Furnace, strengthened market recognition of Anqing petroleum coke, expanding market penetration of flat acrylic fiber, plus sustained cost savings from green power and waste heat power generation projects, the enterprise’s profitability and profit margins will keep rising, with earnings structure further tilted toward high-value-added products.

4. Future Development Roadmap: High-End, Green & Intelligent Upgrade to Elevate Profit Quality

Building on its existing integrated industrial advantages and aligning with the sector’s high-end, low-carbon and digital transformation trends, Anqing Petrochemical focuses on three core goals: consolidating profit advantages, expanding high-end business tracks and cutting operating costs to advance high-quality development.

4.1 Expand High-End Product Layout to Consolidate Core Profit Sources

4.2 Strengthen Cost Control to Lift Profit Margins

4.3 Accelerate Green Low-Carbon Transformation

Boost environmental investment steadily, push forward the construction of a waste-free enterprise, upgrade wastewater, solid waste and waste gas treatment processes and march toward near-zero pollutant emissions. Expand the comprehensive solar energy utilization network, optimize energy mix and cut carbon emissions. Explore the application of carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) technologies to support national dual-carbon targets while eliminating environmental compliance risks and complying with the green development trend of the petrochemical industry.

4.4 Speed Up Digital & Intelligent Transformation to Raise Operational Efficiency

Roll out intelligent manufacturing programs and build a complete "5G + Industrial Internet" system to upgrade intelligent inspection, smart logistics and automatic monitoring systems, lifting production efficiency and safety management standards. Adopt digital technologies to realize real-time monitoring and analysis of production parameters, cost data and market demand, optimize production and sales strategies and stabilize profit performance.

4.5 Deepen Industrial Chain Collaboration to Expand Growth Space

Leverage its leading role as a regional flagship enterprise to deepen cooperation with local enterprises including Shuguang Group and Huitong New Materials in Anqing High-tech Zone and complete the local advanced chemical new materials industrial chain. Capitalize on its superior geographic location within the Yangtze River Economic Belt to expand overseas and domestic market coverage for core products, raise market share and fully unlock profit potential brought by integrated operation.

Conclusion

Backed by full state-owned ownership under Sinopec, independent technological innovation and targeted high-end product layout, Anqing Petrochemical has successfully transformed from a traditional fuel refinery into a high-end advanced chemical new materials enterprise. Supported by differentiated competitive strengths, it maintains robust profitability and market competitiveness amid the industrial restructuring wave, delivering strong momentum for the high-quality development of the entire Yangtze River Economic Belt.