In the warm winter sun of the Zhundong Gobi Desert in Xinjiang, a 224 hectare open field is quietly brewing an energy revolution. On December 23, 2025, as a key EPC general contracting docking meeting came to an end, the core lifeline of the National Energy Group's Zhundong 2 billion cubic meters/year coal to natural gas project - the methane unit, power station, and waste heat recovery and utilization device - officially embarked on a journey from blueprint to reality. The EPC general contracting docking meeting for the key equipment of the Zhundong 2 billion cubic meters/year coal to natural gas project of the National Energy Group was successfully held at China Chemical Chengda Company, marking the official implementation stage of the project's methane unit, power station, and waste heat recovery and utilization unit.

As the core links of the coal to natural gas production process, the methane unit, power station, and waste heat recovery and utilization device directly determine the overall energy efficiency, operational stability, and economy of the project, and are key levers for achieving clean and efficient conversion of coal. China Chemical Chengda Company will leverage its accumulated engineering experience and technological advantages in the large-scale coal chemical industry to deepen the integration of processes and engineering technologies, and help the project build a domestic benchmark for the industrialization of complete coal to natural gas technology.

It is reported that the project is located in Xiheshan Industrial Park, Zhundong Economic and Technological Development Zone, Xinjiang, with a total investment of about 16.793 billion yuan and a land area of 224 hectares. The project relies on the abundant coal resources in Xinjiang, focuses on the goal of on-site coal conversion, and constructs a new modern industrial system that integrates coal to oil, coal to gas, and clean energy.

The overall layout of the project is rectangular, with a length of 2000 meters from east to west and a width of 1120 meters from north to south. It is about 300 kilometers away from Urumqi City, adjacent to Xinyou Power Plant and Ingmar Power Plant on the south side, and about 2 kilometers away from Hengsi Road in Xiheshan Mining Area. The construction content covers core process units such as air separation, coal gasification, purification, methanation, and sulfur recovery, as well as power generation, new energy systems, supporting utilities, and auxiliary production facilities. The coal gasification unit includes fixed bed gasification, gas water separation, and other subdivisions. The purification unit integrates environmental protection processes such as acid gas removal and CCUS.Editor/Bian Wenjun