Polypropylene: Feedstocks
Four ways to get propylene, and which is cheapest
What this tab covers What it is made from and what it feeds: the raw materials and energy per tonne with their share of cost (linked to the commodity table), who is low-cost and why, and the chemicals made from it.PP is about 99% propylene (copolymers add 3-15% ethylene), so propylene sets about 75-90% of cash cost. Propylene comes from naphtha crackers, refinery FCC units, PDH plants or coal. Cheap Gulf and US propane and refinery propylene are lowest cost; Chinese PDH on imported propane is mid-to-high; European and Japanese naphtha routes are highest.
Inputs per tonne
| Input | Quantity per tonne | Role | Share of cost | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oil Crude oil | about 1.0-1.01 t propylene per t PP (indicative) | monomer in India, Europe, Japan, Korea and much of China | about 80-90% (indicative) | propylene tile; indicative |
| Gas Natural gas | about 1.2 t propane per t propylene (propylene tile) | monomer in China, the Gulf and the US | about 70-80% of PDH-PP cash cost (indicative) | propylene tile |
| Tc Thermal coal | about 3 t methanol per t light olefins (propylene tile) | inland China | not published | propylene tile |
| Ethylene comonomer | about 0.03-0.15 t per t random or impact copolymer (indicative) | toughness and clarity | about 2-10% for copolymers (indicative) | indicative |
| Ti Titanium | under 0.05 kg per t (indicative) | stereospecific polymerisation | about 1-2% (indicative) | indicative |
| Electricity and steam | about 0.3-0.4 MWh per t (indicative) | reactors, recycle compressors, extrusion | about 3-6% (indicative) | indicative |
Who is low-cost, and why
In H2 2025 the China PP-propylene spread was only about $75/t (propylene tile, Platts). By 9 Sep 2026, Far East Asia PP raffia at $1,120-1,160/t CFR was below propylene at $1,165-1,175/t CFR China (Polymerupdate), so non-integrated PP makers buying propylene were losing money while integrated Gulf and refinery producers were not.