Summary: Zhangye Dagong organised an environmental protection acceptance check upon project completion for its 3,000 t/a mesotrione TC production line and the supporting facilities. The expert panel agreed that the project could get a pass. With this, Zhangye Dagong will come more competitive in the mesotrione TC market.

Early this month, CCM learned from Zhangye Dagong Pesticide Chemistry Co., Ltd. (Zhangye Dagong) that it had already carried out a company-organised environmental protection acceptance check upon project completion for the 3,000 t/a mesotrione TC production line and the supporting facilities, and the expert panel had decided to give a pass. This expansion project is a key move for Zhangye Dagong. It previously had a 240 t/a mesotrione TC line in its plant in the Circular Economy Demonstration Park, Zhangye Economic and Technological Development Zone, Zhangye City, Gansu Province. As the new large-scale line was put into operation, the company dismantled the old one.

It should be noted that according to its original plan, Zhangye Dagong would have a 1,200 t/a 1,3-cyclohexanedione line and a 2,600 t/a 1-methyl-4-methylsulfonylbenzene line built along with the mesotrione line. But it later cancelled these two supporting lines at the construction stage.

Located in northwestern China, Zhangye Dagong has engaged itself in mesotrione business for many years, and built up its influence in the mesotrione TC market. Moreover, it has developed competitive mesotrione formulation series. Currently, the company holds pesticide registration certificates for eight mesotrione formulation products: mesotrione·nicosulfuron·atrazine 35% OD, mesotrione 20% OD, mesotrione 40% SC, mesotrione·nicosulfuron 25% OD, mesotrione·penoxsulam 16% OD, mesotrione·atrazine 55% SC, mesotrione 10% OD and mesotrione·butralin 28% SE.

Mesotrione is a high-efficacy, safe and eco-friendly triketone herbicide with quite broad weed control spectrum and strong herbicidal activity. It has relatively good effects on gramineous, broadleaf and sedge weeds. Mesotrione has been widely promoted in controlling weeds in maize field. Although it was put on the pesticide market long before, it still attracted many attentions of Chinese pesticide producers in recent years. The total capacity of mesotrione TC expanded quickly in China in the past few years.

At present, major active mesotrione TC producers in China are: Shandong Binnong Technology Co., Ltd., Shangyu Nutrichem Co., Ltd., Jiangsu Youjia Crop Protection Co., Ltd., Shenyang Sciencreat Chemicals Co., Ltd., Inner Mongolia Zhonggao Chemical Co., Ltd., Anhui Zhongshan Chemical Co., Ltd., Limin Chemical Co., Ltd., Liaoning Longtian Chemical Technology Co., Ltd. and Hubei Guangfulin Biological Products Co., Ltd. This time, with the successful expansion project, Zhangye Dagong will come more competitive in this market.

Many more pesticide companies are joining the market. Pesticide manufacturers like Jiangsu Fengshan Group Co., Ltd., Jiangsu Changqing Agrochemical Co., Ltd., Yongnong BioSciences Co., Ltd. and Gansu Ruidong Chemical Co., Ltd. have announced their investment plans. It is inevitable the future mesotrione TC market will see stiff competition, as domestic capacity keeps increasing.

Attention should also be paid to another triketone herbicide, tembotrione, a darling in today's Chinese pesticide market. The compound patent for this active ingredient expired in Sept. 2019, and then domestic pesticide producers began to set foot in this market. Tembotrione projects are being constructed and many more plans are announced; the production capacity of tembotrione in China will grow fast.

In the short term, tembotrione will have little impact on mesotrione market. Yet it should be remembered that tembotrione is believed to be the biggest rival to mesotrione, and the former has scored higher on safety and herbicidal activity than the latter, and thus may snatch larger market share.