Exciting times ahead: the launch ceremony for a cutting-edge and potentially revolutionary coal conversion demonstration project takes place Juungar Banner in North China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region, on Nov 27. [Photo/WeChat account of Ordos Release]

The launch ceremony for a demonstration plant for a potentially revolutionary coal conversion technology took place recently in North China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region, on Nov 27, officials said.

They said the project has operated in-situ coal conversion, or ISC technology, to see whether it can eventually be fully industrialized and commercialized.

The ceremony -- which was held at Juungar Banner in the city of Ordos -- marked the first time that a Chinese company has achieved a level on par with the most advanced in the world in the field of ISC technology, which promises a revolution in the safe, efficient and clean use of coal energy.

The plant, which was funded and built by Zhongwei Energy Technology Co Ltd (ZWEG), is located in the Tangjiahui mining area and it successfully started operating in October.

Officials said that so far, it has been running stably for more than one month and all indications are that it has met the design requirements, which proves that the fourth generation of ISC technology is mature, stable, safe and efficient.

They added that the project is the only industrial demonstration project for ISC technology in the world that can realize real-time automatic monitoring and online analysis.

It can adopt pure oxygen gasification, multi-functional injection wells and high-temperature well technology and can produce continuously and stably.

Tangjiahui mining area's new demonstration plant for ISC technology promises potentially big things for the coal industry. [Photo/WeChat account of Ordos Release]

Su Ruchun, the chairman of ZWEG, said that the successful operation of the project would provide complete technical parameters and lay a solid practical foundation for the large-scale industrialization and promotion of ISC technology at a later stage.

It promises to solve the safety, transportation, water use and environmental protection problems of conventional coal mining.

Success with ISC also promises to contribute to the transformation and upgrading of Inner Mongolia's coal energy sector and the development of China's energy strategic safety and environmental protection.

He added that, the economic benefit of ISC project is much higher than that of surface coal-to-gas project and shaft mining. According to preliminary calculations, the benefit of ISC project is more than 50 percent higher than that of surface coal-to-gas projects.

According to the ZWEG president, after the demonstration project is successfully put into operation, the company will continue to work with its partners and plan to give priority to the construction of a 4 billion cubic meter synthetic natural gas plant.

The bigger plant, with annual output estimated to be worth about 20 billion yuan ($2.85 billion), will use fourth generation ISC technology that has been verified by the demonstration project to be mature and stable.