China's titanium dioxide annual production capacity is likely to exceed 10 million tons

September 17, held in Zhuzhou, Hunan 2022 titanium dioxide industry innovation conference and high-tech exchange, titanium dioxide industry technology innovation strategic alliance secretary-general, chemical industry productivity promotion center titanium white sub-center director Bi Sheng pointed out that in recent years, enterprises inside and outside the industry have invested in titanium dioxide projects, can be expected, several years later even if some of them can be achieved, China's total titanium dioxide production capacity is likely to exceed 10 million tons / year. At that time, the market outlook and industry is unimaginable.

Increasing concentration of production capacity

According to Bi Sheng, in 2021, China's titanium dioxide industry with normal production conditions of the full-process type manufacturers a total of 42. Among them, pure chlorination process 2, with both sulfuric acid process and chlorination process 3, the remaining 37 are sulfuric acid process. The total effective capacity of the industry in that year was 4.6 million tons/year, with a total output of 3.79 million tons and an average capacity utilization rate of 82.39%.

Among the 42 full-process titanium dioxide producers, the actual output last year reached 900,000 tons or more of a very large enterprise; production reached 100,000 tons and above 11 large enterprises; production reached 50,000 ~ 100,000 tons of medium-sized enterprises 8; the remaining 22 producers are small and micro enterprises.

The integrated output of the first 12 titanium dioxide producers last year was 2.65 million tons, accounting for 69.92% of the total industry output; the integrated output of 8 medium-sized enterprises was 600,000 tons, accounting for 15.83% of the output; the integrated output of the remaining 22 micro and small enterprises was 540,000 tons, accounting for 14.25% of the output.

Last year, the combined output of the five chlorinated enterprises in the country's chlorinated titanium dioxide was 380,000 tons, accounting for 9.90% of the total national output; accounting for 12.00% of rutile titanium dioxide production.

Expansion of production capacity has increased dramatically in the recent past

Bi Sheng pointed out that the scale of the existing producers has further expanded recently. In the existing titanium dioxide producers have been made public is implementing the expansion or new titanium dioxide projects, 2022-2023 at least six projects will be completed and put into operation, the new scale in about 450,000 tons / year. By the end of 2023, the total production scale of existing enterprises in the titanium dioxide industry will reach more than 5.05 million tons / year.

Public information shows that there are at least four titanium dioxide projects under construction now, with a design capacity of 660,000 tons/year or more, to be completed in 2022-2023. Thus, by 2023, the total production capacity of titanium dioxide in China will reach at least 5.7 million tons / year.

Bi Sheng stressed that the current titanium dioxide industry is more noteworthy is that, with the rise of green new energy battery materials industry, a large number of iron phosphate or lithium iron phosphate projects inside and outside the industry are under construction or in preparation, most of which are from iron sources. Iron source of the most convenient and economic channel is ferrous sulfate, and ferrous sulfate is the most important by-product of the production process of titanium dioxide sulfate.

Bi Sheng points out that even without the titanium dioxide capacity involved in new energy materials, by 2023, China's total titanium dioxide production capacity will reach more than 5.7 million tons/year, accounting for about 62% of the total global titanium dioxide production capacity of 9.2 million tons/year. If we take 83% to 85% of the industry's normal operating rate, the total annual output of titanium dioxide will reach about 4.7 to 4.8 million tons by that time.

Bi Sheng pointed out that by 2023, China's boiling chlorination titanium dioxide production capacity will reach more than 900,000 tons / year, will need about 1.4 million tons of high-grade titanium raw materials each year. In addition to small smelters in some areas of the country can provide a small amount of products, the vast majority can only rely on foreign imports of high-quality titanium ore reprocessing refining, or direct imports of high-grade titanium raw materials. But in recent years, multiple information shows that the international market high-grade (TiO2 ≥ 92%) titanium raw materials or the production of non-excavation, but no major progress, but also in a downward trend, the future boiling chlorination of titanium dioxide required titanium raw material supply and demand will be a shortage of indisputable fact.

Bi Sheng believes that, for the new boiling process chlorination titanium dioxide project, the basic conditions in addition to the need for high investment and high-end technology and talent, the stable source of high-grade titanium raw materials is another key issue.

According to Bi Sheng, in 2021, in addition to the imported high-grade titanium raw materials for the boiling chlorination process, the total consumption of titanium ore in the country amounted to more than 9 million tons. Last year, the country's titanium ore imports were 3.8 million tons, and domestic production was about 6.5 to 7 million tons, which generally met the market needs.

Bi Sheng expects that by 2023, the titanium raw materials needed for the titanium dioxide industry will reach more than 13 million tons, and other titanium-related industries will need about 1.2 million tons of titanium ore, with a total market demand of about 14.2 million tons of titanium ore or more. If some of the dozens of new energy projects in China are completed and put into operation, the demand for titanium ore will increase significantly again.

At present, China domestic titanium ore mainly originated from the Panxi region of Sichuan, Hebei Chengde area and smaller mines in Shandong and Xinjiang, the expansion of production capacity is limited. And the number of imported ore is generally on a downward trend, and there are many uncertainties in the arrival ship schedule. 2022 June, the country's titanium ore imports of 268,700 tons, down 24.96% year-on-year; January-June, the country's cumulative imports of titanium ore fell 242,800 tons, down 12.27%. Bi Sheng analyzed that in the future, the imbalance between supply and demand in the market of titanium ore raw materials is a probable thing.

So far, only five enterprises in the industry have their own titanium ore raw material resources, the rest of the producers can only purchase raw materials through different channels, which to a large extent to normal production brings uncertainty. Bi Sheng pointed out that not only boiling chlorination titanium dioxide production of high-grade titanium raw material supply is a problem, sulfate titanium dioxide is also facing a shortage of titanium raw materials bottleneck.