Sibur upgrades terephthalic acid production facility in Blagoveshchensk

Russian petrochemicals company Sibur has upgraded its terephthalic acid production facility (TPA production facility) at its Blagoveshchensk site in Russia to meet the growing demand for the polymer in the country and phase out reliance on imports.

The upgrade will increase the capacity of the country’s only terephthalic acid production facility from 272,000 to 350,000 tons per annum, benefiting medicine, construction, food packaging, and textiles among others, as per the latest Russian chemical industry news.

The TPA production facility will improve energy efficiency multifold and cut emissions by 50% following the construction of a modern gas oxidiser and new air cooling system.

Opening of the upgraded Sibur terephthalic acid production facility in Blagoveshchensk. Photo courtesy of SIBUR.

Dmitry Konov – chairman of the Management Board at SIBUR Holding, commenting on the reconstruction of the terephthalic acid production facility, said: “While not SIBUR’s most large-scale project, the TPA production upgrade is definitely the one that is most sophisticated, as we have overhauled and expanded the existing capacities instead of building new ones from scratch.

“It was well worth it though, as the additional volumes will ensure 100% capacity utilisation of Perm’s eco-friendly plasticiser facility that we launched this spring.

“We also outfitted the site with cutting-edge solutions to make TPA production even greener and more efficient.”

The reconstruction of the Sibur terephthalic acid production facility, which began in 2017, involved the revamping of more than 150 units of the core process equipment and most of the auxiliary equipment, while covering 11 buildings on the manufacturing facility.

A precursor to polyethylene terephthalate (PET), TPA is used to manufacture plastic bottles for beverages, synthetic fibres, eco-friendly plasticisers for toys, flooring, various packaging, and medical supplies.

The value of the revamp of the terephthalic acid production facility in Blagoveshchensk of the Russian petrochemicals company was put at over RUB6 billion (approximately US$91 million), including an approximately RUB1 billion loan from the Foundation for Development of Single-Industry Towns.