The market demand for metallocene catalysts in my country is strong and there is huge room for domestic substitution.

Metallocene catalysts, also known as single active site catalysts, refer to catalytic systems composed of Group IVB transition metal element complexes as the main catalyst and alkylaluminoxane or organoborides as cocatalysts. Metallocene catalysts have the characteristics of high polymerization activity, many applicable monomers, stable performance, and precise control of polymer structure. They have broad application prospects in engineering plastics, elastomers, glass and other fields. According to different ligand structures, metallocene catalysts can be divided into single-type metallocene catalysts, dual-type metallocene catalysts, supported metallocene catalysts and cationic metallocene catalysts.

According to the “2022-2027 Metallocene Catalyst Industry Market In-depth Research and Investment Prospect Forecast Analysis Report released by the Industrial Research Center, In recent years, the development of the metallocene catalyst industry has been accelerating, and the market space has continued to expand. In 2021, the global metallocene catalyst market will reach 2.15 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 8.4%. As application demand becomes increasingly strong, it is expected that its market size will exceed 3 billion yuan by 2027.

​​​​Metallocene catalysts are used in a wide range of applications, including engineering plastics, elastomers, glass, etc. Metallocene polyethylene (mPE) and metallocene polypropylene (mPP) are its end products. In 2021, my country’s metallocene polyethylene production will reach 201,000 tons, and its consumption will reach 1.104 million tons. Due to the insufficient supply of metallocene catalysts, demand is highly dependent on imports.

The core technology of metallocene catalysts has long been monopolized by large overseas petrochemical companies. my country’s level of independent research and development is relatively low, and there is a certain gap compared with overseas developed countries in terms of product quality and output. However, in recent years, driven by national policy support and technological innovation by leading companies, my country’s metallocene catalyst production capacity has rapidly expanded and output has continued to grow, but the output is still unable to meet market demand.

The technical barriers to entry in the metallocene catalyst industry are relatively high. In the global market, representative companies include Mitsui Chemicals of Japan, Exxon Mobil Corporation of the United States, Dow Chemical Company of the United States, British Petroleum Corporation, and SK Chemicals of South Korea. After years of development, the localization process of metallocene catalysts in my country has continued to accelerate. Sinopec Yangzi Petrochemical Co., Ltd., Zibo Xinsu Chemical Co., Ltd., and Liaoning Dingjide Petrochemical Co., Ltd. are the leading metallocene catalyst companies in my country. In November 2022, Yangzi Petrochemical successfully prepared a new metallocene polypropylene product, mPP H-Y45-S, using a self-developed metallocene catalyst.

​​  Industry analysts said that metallocene catalysts have the advantages of high catalytic activity, many applicable monomers, and a wide range of applications. Restricted by high technical barriers and other factors, compared with overseas developed countries, the development of my country’s metallocene catalyst industry is relatively lagging behind. In recent years, driven by technological innovation, my country’s metallocene catalysts have been greatly improved in terms of output and quality, which has accelerated the process of domestic substitution.