ERCO in $95m expansion of US chlor-alkali plant

09 August 2007 16:40  [Source: ICIS news]

TORONTO (ICIS news)--Canada’s ERCO Worldwide will invest $95m to upgrade and expand its US potassium chlor-alkali plant by 30% to be completed in late 2009, parent company Superior Plus said on Thursday.

 

Chemicals company ERCO would convert the plant at Port Edwards, Wisconsin, to membrane technology, thereby extending its life by up to 30 years, Superior chief executive Grant Billing told analysts in a conference call.

 

The existing facility was mercury-based and would have had to close within seven years, Billing said. 

 

Conversion and construction work would begin shortly and have only minimal disruptive impact on current production, Billing added.

 

Membrane technology was energy-saving and environmentally friendly, compared with the mercury-based process, he said, adding that another ERCO plant - in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan - was already running on that technology.

 

Meanwhile, ERCO reported second-quarter gross profits of Canadian dollars (C$) 48.5m ($45.92m) on revenues of C$110.4m, compared with gross profits of C$48.2m and revenues of C$105.4m in the second quarter of 2006.

 

Sales volumes were 193,000 tonnes, up 5.5% year on year, reflecting higher operating rates and a new plant in Chile that more than offset the lost volumes from a plant closure in Alberta.

 

Pricing for ERCO’s sodium chlorate and chloralkali/potassium products remained strong during the three months ended 30 June but that benefit was partially offset by the appreciation of the Canadian dollar versus the US dollar, Billing said.

 

ERCO expected to increase sodium chlorate prices by $25 to $35/tonne in the third quarter, in line with higher production costs, he added.

 

In a recent regulatory filing, Superior said the Port Edwards plant had capacities for 71,000 tonnes/year of chlorine, 79,400 dry tonnes/year of caustic soda, 33,000 dry tonnes/year of hydrochloric acid, 75,000 dry tonnes/year of potassium hydroxide and 22,700 tonnes/year of potassium carbonate.

 

($1 = C$1.05)

By: Stefan Baumgarten
+1 713 525 2653

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