Port inventory rises, November ethylene glycol price center shifts downward

November 28th news

In November, the price center of ethylene glycol in China shifted downward.

In November, the price of ethylene glycol continued to fall, with the price center shifting downward. Recently, the price has started to stabilize. According to data, as of November 28, the average price of oil-based ethylene glycol in China was 4050 CNY/ton, a decrease of 4.05% from the average price of 4220.83 CNY/ton on November 1.

In terms of ethylene glycol at Chinese ports, the basis for spot contracts of ethylene glycol at the port (starting from 500 tons) has weakened significantly. This week, the contract weakened during the day and began to trade at a discount to futures. Today, the intraday basis quotes for this week's contract ranged from +8 to -5. As of the close on November 28, the basis quotes for next week's contract were +5 to +6, for the December contract +18 to +20, and for the January contract +33 to +35.

The spot price for coal-based polyester-grade ethylene glycol in China (bulk, tax included, self-pickup) for a full truckload is 3720-3880 CNY/ton.

In the overseas monoethylene glycol (MEG) market, as of November 26, recent cargo prices were negotiated and transacted around $460-462 per ton for arrival in China.

Changes to the Ethylene Glycol Unit in November 2025:

In November 2025, the ethylene glycol plants in China showed a situation where multiple plants were restarting, undergoing maintenance, and reducing loads. Overseas, the shutdown of Iranian plants raised supply concerns, while some plants in the Middle East and Southeast Asia operated stably. The specific dynamics are as follows:

Chinese device

Restarting facilities: Zhenhai Refining & Chemical’s 800,000-ton-per-year plant is expected to resume operations around mid-November; Henan Coal Industry (Puyang)’s 200,000-ton-per-year ethylene glycol plant is scheduled to restart in the mid-to-late November; Jianyuan’s 260,000-ton-per-year plant, which had been shut down in early September, is tentatively set to resume operations in November; Tongliao Jinmei’s 300,000-ton-per-year plant is expected to begin producing output around early November, marking a gradual recovery of its production capacity; and Sinochem’s 300,000-ton-per-year plant will resume operations in November. Additionally, according to news on November 28, a 900,000-ton-per-year ethylene glycol plant in East China has entered the warming-up and restart phase.

Maintenance category: A 400,000 tons/year unit at Yunnan Coal in Inner Mongolia was shut down for maintenance from November 1 to 25; the 600,000 tons/year unit at Zhengdakai is scheduled for a 10-day shutdown for maintenance in November; on November 25, a 500,000 tons/year ethylene glycol unit in South China began a shutdown for maintenance; one line of the 900,000 tons/year unit at Shenghong Refining and Chemical has been shut down since October 22, with an expected maintenance duration of 35-40 days, lasting through most of November. Additionally, the originally planned November maintenance for the 400,000 tons/year unit at Yulin Energy Chemical was ultimately canceled, while Fude Energy's 500,000 tons/year unit has tentatively scheduled its maintenance for December, with specific details yet to be determined.

Load reduction: Around mid-November, the Yulong Petrochemical ethylene glycol plant reduced its load by 80%, and one line of the 1.8 million ton/year facility at Shaanxi Yulin Chemical was operating at a reduced load. There was also a slight overall load reduction in integrated plants, with an increasing number of synthesis gas plants reducing their loads.

Overseas facility

Iranian Facility Changes Draw Attention: On November 24, market reports indicated that two Iranian ethylene glycol plants with a combined annual capacity of 3.3 million tons have been shut down. Additionally, four other ethylene glycol plants with a combined annual capacity of 7.25 million tons are scheduled to halt operations in late January or early December. These changes are expected to significantly impact the global ethylene glycol supply landscape and have become one of the factors helping to stabilize ethylene glycol prices at the end of the month. Furthermore, Iran’s Morvarid plant—a single ethylene glycol facility with an annual capacity of 500,000 tons—has been operating at reduced capacity throughout this month.

Other regions are operating steadily: Saudi Arabia’s 550,000-ton-per-year ethylene glycol plant remains in normal operation; however, SABIC’s related facilities are expected to reduce supply by approximately 70,000 tons per month from November to December. Malaysia’s Maha 750,000-ton-per-year ethylene glycol plant completed its restart and resumed operations in November, and overall, this did not have any significant negative impact on the month’s supply.

In November 2025, the inventory of ethylene glycol in the main ports of East China increased by 209,000 tons.

On November 27, 2025, the total inventory of monoethylene glycol in the main ports of East China was 708,000 tons, an increase of 40,400 tons from the total inventory of 667,600 tons on November 17, 2025; an increase of 209,000 tons from the total inventory of 499,000 tons on October 30, 2025; and an increase of 352,900 tons from the total inventory of 355,100 tons on September 29, 2025.