Shenhua Group plans coal-to-oil investment

Shenhua Group plans to invest more than US$58.53 billion over the next 10 years in facilities to convert coal to oil, methanol and gas, Reuters reports, citing state media. China’s biggest coal producer, Shenhua hopes to have the capacity to convert nearly 100 million tons of coal into roughly 30 million tons of oil and chemical products by 2020. One of the firm’s coal-to-liquid plants in Inner Mongolia has undergone a successful trial run, producing naphtha and diesel, among other products. Investment risks led China to halt all but two coal-to-oil projects in the country. However, China has encouraged coal-to-oil projects as a way to decrease its dependence on foreign oil.