Background of the Sixth Naphtha Cracker Project
origin
In light of the severe shortage of basic petrochemical materials in Taiwan over the years, which has limited the development of the petrochemical industry's mid-stream and down-stream services, Formosa Plastics Group proposed the Sixth Naphtha Cracker Project to resolve the problem of insufficient raw materials, and the project was approved by the government in 1986.
Location of the Sixth Naphtha Cracker Project
Yunlin wholeheartedly welcomed FPG in 1991, and FPG subsequently carried out land reclamation in Mailiao District and Haifeng District, where the Yunlin Offshore Industrial Complex is located.Mailiao Township is commonly known as the place “where the water ends and the wind begins,” and not only is it inconvenient to access, but also extremely poor weather conditions for six months every year due to the strong northeast monsoon affect the area.
Mailiao District and Haifeng District, areas developed by the Sixth Naphtha Cracker Project, are located on the estuary of Zhuoshui River in the northmost end of Yunlin County. The area stretches approximately 8 km from north to south, and extends 4 km offshore from the coastline. Most of the land is below sea level, and only a small sand mound appears during low tide. The area is underwater during high tide. It was necessary to carry out large scale land reclamation, with the total development area reaching 2,255 hectares. The two areas are separated from coastal fish farms by a channel, and ground improvements must be completed
after land reclamation to secure the foundation, so that it can be used for plant construction.
1.Land reclamation
Approximately 109.15 million cubic meters of sand was used, which is enough to cover the 8-lane highway that stretches 373 km from Keelung to Kaohsiung in sand 3-stories high. The area of reclaimed land is approximately 2,255 hectares, which is about 8% of the area of Taipei City (27,180 hectares) and 0.062% of the area of Taiwan.
2.Foundation equipment construction
The total length of piles that were installed reached 4.7 million meters. 9.04 million cubic meters of concrete was used (requires approximately 1.97 million MT of cement).
3.Plant construction
A total of 56 plants, including a refining plant, naphtha cracker, cogeneration power plant, power plant, heavy machinery plant, boiler plant, fab, and other petrochemical related plants were constructed in a single industrial complex. The length of pipelines in the complex stretches over 3,000 km.
4.Complex area
Approximately 2,603 hectares, over four times the total area of Linyuan Industrial Park (403 hectares), Dashe Industrial Park (109 hectares), and Toufen Industrial Park (95 hectares).
(FPG, Apr. 17, 2024)