Dow expects St Charles Louisiana PE restart in 3-4 weeks

10 January 2011 23:11  [Source: ICIS news]

HOUSTON (ICIS)--Dow Chemical plans to restart polyethylene (PE) units at its St Charles plant in Louisiana within 3-4 weeks following a power interruption on 3 January, the company said in a letter to customers on Monday.

The restart of the PE units would be contingent on the successful restart of the St Charles site’s infrastructure, according to the company.

“Dow does not expect to be able to return to normal shipping volumes until at least March 1, 2011,” the letter said.

Dow has not declared force majeure for its plastics business, but the company may reassess the situation as it learns more about the impact of the power failure on its PE units.

Company officials declined to disclose production capacity figures for PE, but ICIS plants and projects listed the capacity at 815,000 tonnes/year.

The St Charles site produces ethylene and derivatives including ethylene oxide (EO) and triethylene glycol (TEG).

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By: David Barry
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