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China’s biggest coal-to-liquids plant ramps up, boosting value sevenfold
The production line began full operations in Ningxia last month and processed 24 million tonnes of coal in 2025, about a quarter of the region’s output, according to the report.
China has boosted the economic value of coal-to-liquids production by sevenfold, according to a Chinese newspaper cited by SCMP Economy.
The report says the world’s largest coal-to-liquids facility, built by China Energy Group Ningxia Coal Industry Co Ltd, started full operations in northwest China’s Ningxia Hui autonomous region last month. It processed 24 million tonnes of coal in 2025, roughly a quarter of Ningxia’s annual output, the outlet added.
The technology turns coal into oil products, with SCMP Economy noting the plant can be used to produce fuels that can support rocket power and machine lubricants. The report also says the project has generated substantial economic returns and reduced reliance on imported crude oil.
The outlet links the push to shifting oil supply conditions, saying China previously sourced more than 40% of its crude oil from the Middle East before the Strait of Hormuz was blocked amid the US-Israel war on Iran, a period when international prices rose above US$100 per barrel. The facility uses indirect coal liquefaction, heating coal with oxygen and steam to create synthetic gas made of carbon monoxide and hydrogen, the report said.
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