Drag-reduction and throughput-increase technologies are most cost-effective in terms of reversing the gradual drop in throughput along in-service pipelines due to corrosion and aging. After a decade of concerted efforts, the Science & Technology Center of China Petroleum Pipeline Engineering Corporation (CPPE) has overcome three technological challenges — super-purification of alkenes, polymerization control, and suspension dispersion of polymers. EP series α-alkenes drag reducers have been developed, which can increase the throughput of new pipelines by 60%, and maintain the safe operation of old pipelines at their designed throughput.

With its current throughput-increase and drag-reduction technologies, CNPC has acquired 16 invention patents out of 31 applications at home and abroad, including a core-technology patent acquired in United States. In 2009, CNPC built China's one and only industrial production line which can produce 5,000m3 of drag-reduction agent a year. The production facilities cost only 1/20 that of foreign ones and can produce the EP series of drag-reduction agents at 1/3 of the cost in foreign countries. This has helped CNPC become the world's third-largest producer of drag reducers.

Our EP series of drag reduction agents has shares of 90% and 15% on the domestic and foreign markets, respectively. This series has been applied in a number of oil pipelines in China, and resulted in cumulative economic benefits of RMB3.57 billion. As a world-renowned brand, it has also been used in oil pipelines in 10 countries including the UK, Norway, Iran and Sudan.