|
TotalEnergies Aims for Mid-2022 Startup for Texas Cracker and Polyethylene Unit
February 10, 2022
TotalEnergies said it is targeting a mid-2022 startup of its 1 million mt/yr Ethane cracker in Port Arthur, Texas, along with its 625,000 mt/yr Polyethylene (PE) unit in Bayport, Texas.
Company CEO Patrick Pouyanné said during a Q4 2021 earnings call that all teams in the US are mobilized to start up the cracker, and the PE lines at about the same time.
The $1.7 billion project, which will see the Port Arthur cracker supply the PE Bayport unit, reached a final investment decision 2018, with an online date planned late 2020. The project saw a significant delay due to the impact from COVID-19.
The project, a 50-50 joint venture with Borealis, will add to the nearly 4 million mt of other new resin production expected to come online in North America this year.
Shell reiterated earlier this month that it plans to bring its massive $6 billion complex in Monaca, Pennsylvania online during 2022, but has not given a specific startup date. The Monaca facility near Pittsburgh will include a 1.5 million mt/yr ethane cracker and three PE units totaling 1.6 million mt/yr.
In late January, ExxonMobil and Sabic started up their Gulf Coast Growth Ventures (GCGV) petrochemical and resin facility San Patricio County, Texas. The 50-50 joint venture operation between ExxonMobil and Sabic includes a 1.8 million mt/yr Ethane steam cracker, two PE units capable of producing up to 1.3 million mt/yr, and a Monoethylene Glycol unit with a capacity of 1.1 million mt/yr.
Nova Chemicals is also expected to bring a new 454,000 mt/yr LLDPE unit online in St. Clair, Ontario later this year.
By Brian Balboa for The Plastics Exchange.
|
|