News

With advantages in energy, transportation, and market, a sweet business is brewed by Yinzhou Lake

Release time:2016-05-24


In the B area of the Yinzhou Lake Paper Industry Base in Shuangshui Town, Xinhui District, a sugar production line with an annual output of 300,000 tons of refined sugar, 240,000 tons of syrup, and 100,000 tons of caramel color has gradually taken shape. The first phase of the Guangdong Huatang project, with a planned total investment of approximately 300 million yuan, has been basically completed within one year and is scheduled to conduct trial production in June this year. The estimated annual total output value is more than 2 billion yuan.

 Leveraging advantages in energy, transportation, and market, a sweet success story unfolds by the Yinzhou Lake

The initial phase of the Guangdong Huatang project was largely completed within a year and is scheduled for trial production in June this year. Photo by Lin Runkai

 

 Leveraging advantages in energy, transportation, and market, a sweet success story unfolds by the Yinzhou Lake

 

Upon completion of phase one, the Guangdong Huatang project will have an annual production capacity of 640,000 tons.

 

In Zone B of the Yinzhou Lake Paper Industry Base in Shuangshui Town, Xinhui District, a sugar production line with an annual output of 300,000 tons of refined sugar, 240,000 tons of syrup, and 100,000 tons of caramel color is taking shape. The initial phase of the Guangdong Huatang project, with a planned total investment of approximately 300 million yuan, has been largely completed within a year and is scheduled for trial production in June this year, with an estimated annual output value of over 2 billion yuan.

 

Guangdong Huatang Industrial Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Guangdong Huatang"), a sugar production company, chose to locate in the Guangdong Yinzhou Lake Paper Industry Base. To outsiders, this might seem an unusual choice, but it was made by Guangdong Huatang after thorough investigation and assessment. "There is ample steam, convenient transportation, and we are located in the Pearl River Delta, a major high-end food processing base, which is very beneficial to our company's development." Zhao Sijiang, chief engineer of Guangdong Huatang, said that the Guangdong Yinzhou Lake Paper Industry Base is a national pilot demonstration unit for circular economy and one of the first circular economy industrial parks in Guangdong Province. The company can complement the paper companies within the park in many ways, allowing the circular economy pilot park to function optimally. The company will use this as a foundation to grow stronger and gradually expand from the Pearl River Delta region to the whole country.

 

Industry praise

 

Main plant building completed in one year

 

In mid-May this year, under the guidance of Zhao Sijiang, chief engineer of Guangdong Huatang, reporters visited their ongoing initial phase project. Located in Zone B of the Guangdong Yinzhou Lake Paper Industry Base in Shuangshui Town, Xinhui District, the initial main workshop has been largely completed, and internal decoration and production line installation are underway. Construction of energy pipelines is also being expedited.

 

"Once water, electricity, and steam are connected at the end of May, we can start equipment debugging. In late June, we will transport over 60,000 tons of raw sugar to begin trial production." Zhao Sijiang said that construction of the initial phase project began last May, with approximately 270 million yuan invested so far. The project's civil engineering and equipment installation are 90% complete.

 

Zhao Sijiang believes that the smooth progress of the Guangdong Huatang project is mainly due to the investor's ample funds and strong government support. "The leaders and departments at the city, district, and town levels attach great importance to the project's progress and have conducted numerous on-site investigations and meetings to promote the project's construction." Zhao Sijiang said that last year, Shuangshui Town established a working group to promote the construction of major projects, with the town's top leaders personally overseeing and supervising the work, promptly resolving problems for the company. "For example, when we were unfamiliar with the approval process for pile driving, the staff of the working group helped us understand the process. During the construction of the steam pipeline, due to the involvement of natural gas pipeline construction, the construction was difficult. The working group repeatedly organized experts, the natural gas company, and relevant personnel to hold coordination meetings on-site, helping us solve practical difficulties and greatly improving the construction efficiency."

 

"Last year, when we visited a sugar processing company in Japan and introduced our project, they didn't believe that we could complete the initial phase of the project within a year." Zhao Sijiang said that this year, the company came to visit and saw that the project was nearing completion, giving it their praise.

 

Location Selection

 

Focusing on three major advantages of the Yinzhou Lake Paper Industry Base

 

To outsiders, Guangdong Huatang's location in the Yinzhou Lake Paper Industry Base might seem unusual. In fact, it is currently the only non-papermaking enterprise in the Yinzhou Lake Paper Industry Base besides the Shuangshui Power Plant. However, Zhao Sijiang believes that the Yinzhou Lake Paper Industry Base has at least three major advantages that can help Guangdong Huatang grow stronger.

 

The Guangdong Yinzhou Lake Paper Industry Base is a national pilot demonstration unit for circular economy and one of the first circular economy industrial parks in Guangdong Province. This is one of the most important reasons why Guangdong Huatang chose this base. "We can complement the many paper companies in the park, allowing the circular economy pilot park to function effectively." Zhao Sijiang said that for Guangdong Huatang, the biggest advantage of the Yinzhou Lake Paper Industry Base is the ample steam supply. It is expected that after the completion of the third phase of the power plant, the steam supply will be even greater and more stable.

 

Reporters learned that the Guangdong Yinzhou Lake Paper Industry Base uses the Shuangshui Power Plant as a public utility island to implement a "heat, electricity, cold, and water" four-in-one supply and centralized pollution control and logistics, providing a relatively ideal resource combination model. Zhao Sijiang said that energy is one of the largest costs for sugar processing companies. Locating in the Yinzhou Lake Paper Industry Base allows the company to fully enjoy the park's steam energy, eliminating the company's worries. "In addition, the wastewater from papermaking companies is weakly alkaline and has poor biodegradability, while the wastewater from sugar processing is weakly acidic and has strong biodegradability. The two can complement each other, forming a virtuous cycle, minimizing pollution and reducing wastewater treatment costs."

 

Convenient transportation is another reason why Guangdong Huatang chose the Yinzhou Lake Paper Industry Base. "We transport large quantities of goods, with a daily transportation volume of about 1,000-2,000 tons. The transportation cost per ton is more than 10 yuan, which adds up to several million yuan a year." Zhao Sijiang said that the Yinzhou Lake Paper Industry Base is promoting the construction of a wharf in Zone B, and land transportation is very convenient. Major transportation projects such as the Shenmao Railway, Jiangmen Avenue, and Zhongkai Expressway are under planning and construction. Upon completion in the near future, the base's transportation advantages will be even more prominent. "Jiangmen and the Pearl River Delta are one of the largest sugar consumption markets in China. Choosing this location, close to the market, can also reduce our transportation costs."

 

In fact, proximity to the market is the third major reason why Guangdong Huatang chose the Yinzhou Lake Paper Industry Base. Zhao Sijiang introduced that the areas with the highest sugar consumption in China are mainly the Pearl River Delta, the Yangtze River Delta, and the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. Within a radius of 200 kilometers centered on Xinhui, is the area with the highest sugar consumption in the Pearl River Delta. "In fact, there are many large food processing companies in Jiangmen, such as Lee Kum Kee, Master Kong, and Quantum Gaoke, which have a large demand for refined sugar."

 

Future Goals

 

To become the largest refined sugar producer in the province

 

"Originally, we planned a total investment of 300 million yuan, but the actual investment is expected to reach over 350 million yuan." Zhao Sijiang said that China's annual sugar demand is over 10 million tons, while domestic sugar production capacity cannot meet demand, and the gap is gradually widening. This gap is currently being filled by imports. "We mainly produce refined sugar and syrup. Currently, much of the refined sugar in the Pearl River Delta is imported from countries like South Korea. The quality of our products can completely replace imported sugar."

 

Guangdong Huatang's production model involves importing raw sugar from Brazil, Thailand, and other places, processing it into refined sugar and syrup, and then selling it nationwide. "Currently, after the completion of the first phase of the project, our annual production capacity is 640,000 tons, including 300,000 tons of refined sugar, 240,000 tons of syrup, and 100,000 tons of caramel color. This production capacity is not particularly high, but we have already started planning the second phase project, planning to invest 150 million yuan to add a production line. When both production lines are operational, the annual output will reach 1 million tons. At that time, Huatang will be the largest refined sugar producer in Guangdong Province." Zhao Si Jiang said that currently, they still mainly serve the Pearl River Delta region, but will gradually expand to Hong Kong and Macau, and then gradually expand to the national market. "The north mainly uses granulated sugar, and we now have plans to produce some granulated sugar. We also have advantages in this area. Using water transport, shipping from south to north is cheaper than from north to south."

 

In order to better serve the market, while expanding its production capacity, Guangdong Huatang continuously researches market demand and is the first in the country to produce cane syrup on a large scale. "Many food processing companies need cane syrup. Compared with sugar, although syrup has a short shelf life and is not suitable for long-distance transportation, companies can use it directly during processing without the need for decomposition and disinfection, reducing production costs while also being more hygienic and safe." It is foreseeable that the future Guangdong Huatang will set out from the Guangdong Yinzhou Lake Paper Industry Base and strive for a place in the national sugar market.

 

Text/Photo Jiangmen Daily reporters Fu Xue Chao, Lin Run Kai

 

Intern Zhu Leilei

Keywords:Guangdong Huatang