Chinese state-owned oil and gas giant Sinopec 600028.SS has started production at a 3 million metric ton per year PTA plant in eastern Jiangsu province, the company said on Thursday.

Source: xm

The facility has the largest single unit PTA production capacity in the world, and required an investment of more than 5 billion yuan ($691 million), the company said.

China's refiners have invested heavily in petrochemical production capacity in recent years to cater to increased demand from high-end manufacturing industries.

PTA is petroleum derivative product used to create polyester synthetic fibres used in the production of goods from ranging from clothing to solar panels and EVs.