Shintech eyes year-end start-up of Louisiana plant

20 April 2007 11:36  [Source: ICIS news]

TOKYO (ICIS news)--Texas-based polyvinyl chloride (PVC) producer Shintech plans to complete the first-phase construction of its new complex in Louisiana and start up the plant by the end of the year, a spokesman from its Japanese parent Shin-Etsu Chemical said on Friday.

“We don’t know exactly when, but I think it will be a little later than the middle of this year. We are targeting for completion and start of commercial production by the end of the year,” the spokesman said.

The plant was originally scheduled for completion by the end of 2006 but was pushed back to mid-2007 as a result of hurricane-related disruptions, ICIS news previously reported.

The spokesman added that the completion of the second phase would also be pushed back from the original target of the end of 2007. However, he declined from specifying a timeframe.

The facility, at Iberville Parish, south of Plaquemine, would allow Shintech to begin producing some of its own raw materials. Shintech has manufactured only PVC but the new complex would allow it to produce chlorine, caustic soda and vinyl chloride monomer (VCM).

The planned capacity of the complex includes 450,000 tonne/year of chlorine, 500,000 tonne/year of caustic soda and 750,000 tonne/year of VCM and 600,000 tonnes/year of PVC at a total investment cost of $1bn. 

In the first phase of the two-part project, the company will have capacities of 300,000 tonnes of chlorine, 330,000 tonnes/year of caustic soda, 500,000 tonnes/year of VCM and 300,000 tonnes/year of PVC.

The complex would allow Shintech to expand its PVC production in Louisiana to 1.088m tonnes.year from 499,000 tonnes/year.

By: Tomomi Yokomura
+65 6780 4359

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