The growth in private vehicle ownership in China means that demand for MTBE (methyl tertiary butyl ether), which is used to boost octane in lead-free gasoline, will continue to grow in the country. Because Chinese refineries have relatively few alkylation, isomerization and reforming units, they have relied on MTBE as a blending component to boost the octane number of gasoline. In the near future, total new capacity of 870,000 tons per annum (tpa) is being projected. It is expected that China’s MTBE capacity is expected to reach 6.88 million tpa in 2012. In 2010, there were 128 MTBE plants in China, with a total capacity of 6.01 million tpa. PetroChina, Sinopec and CNOOC had 56 MTBE plants in total, with a combined capacity of 3.347 million tpa, representing 55% of the national total. Local refineries had 68 plants, with a combined capacity of 2.6715 million tpa, representing 45%. (September 6, 2011)