Exxon Mobil Corporation's mega Huizhou ethylene project officially began operations on Tuesday, helping the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area city to compete as a global petrochemical industry highland.

The project is one of the major foreign investment projects of the country and the first petrochemical project constructed solely by an American company in China, said a statement released by the Huizhou city government on Tuesday.

"Its high-end chemical products will effectively meet the demand of the domestic market," the statement said.

Construction of the project started in Huizhou's Daya Bay on April 22, 2020.

The first phase of the project includes a flexible-feed steam cracking unit with an annual output of 1.6 million metric tons of ethylene, as well as two high-performance linear low-density polyethylene units with an annual output of 1.2 million metric tons, according to the statement. It also includes the world's largest single low-density polyethylene unit with an annual output of 500,000 metric tons and two differentiated high-performance polypropylene units with an annual output of 950,000 metric tons.

From the construction starting ceremony in 2020 and the launch of the ExxonMobil Dayawan Technology Center in 2023 to the successful trial production, the project demonstrates the high efficiency and speed of China and Guangdong province, as well as the close cooperation between government departments and enterprises, according to the statement.