China is set to lead the world in upcoming petrochemical project starts, with Iran and Russia following closely behind, according to a new report from GlobalData.
The global petrochemical sector is poised for significant expansion over the next five years, driven by robust economic growth and rising demand for key commodities such as polyethylene, polypropylene, and ammonia.
Polyethylene is expected to dominate the landscape, with 127 new projects scheduled to come online between 2025 and 2030.
The vast majority of these will be new builds, reflecting the sector’s focus on expanding capacity rather than simply upgrading existing facilities.
China is projected to account for one-third of all upcoming polyethylene projects, all of which are new builds and primarily under construction.
Iran and Russia are expected to follow, with 20 and 17 projects respectively, signalling a shift in global petrochemical investment toward Asia and Eastern Europe.
Polypropylene is another major commodity seeing a surge in project starts, with 121 projects expected to commence operations by 2030.
Of these, 118 are new builds, while the remainder are expansions of existing facilities.
China leads the pack once again, accounting for more than 40 per cent of global polypropylene project starts.
Of these, 35 are already under construction and are likely to begin operations before the end of the decade.
Ammonia ranks next in terms of project activity, with 83 new build and nine expansion projects expected to come online by 2030.
The United States leads in ammonia project starts, with 16 projects, followed by Australia and China, each with eight.
The US currently has three ammonia projects under construction, China has four, and Australia has one.
This reflects a more diversified global footprint for ammonia, with significant investment in North America and the Asia-Pacific region.
The surge in petrochemical project starts is being driven by escalating demand from end-use sectors such as packaging, automotive, medical, construction, and agriculture.
Countries like China, India, and Iran are at the forefront of this demand, fuelled by rapid industrialisation and population growth.
The expansion of petrochemical capacity is expected to support these sectors’ growth, ensuring a steady supply of essential materials for a wide range of applications.
