Methanex eyes H2 restart for second New Zealand methanol plant

13 January 2012 10:39  [Source: ICIS news]

SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Methanex hopes to restart its second 850,000 tonne/year methanol plant in New Zealand and is currently looking at means to secure natural gas feedstock for the plant, a source close to the Canadian producer said on Friday.

The company’s other unit with the same capacity is currently operating smoothly, the source said.

Its existing natural gas contracts only allow the firm to continue operating the first methanol plant at Motunui through 2011 and 2012, the company official said.

The firm has a total of 1.38m tonnes/year of idled capacity in New Zealand, which includes the second 850,000 tonne/year plant and a 530,000 tonne/year unit, since Methanex does not have enough source of feedstock natural gas to run all its three plants.

Meanwhile, the firm is running at its 1.3m tonne/year EMethanex methanol facility at Damietta in Egypt at high rates, the official said. It was restarted in December following unplanned closure because of protests in the area.

Methanol can be found in everything from windshield washer fluid to plywood floors to paint and acetic acid.

For more on methanol, visit ICIS chemical intelligence
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By: Heng Hui
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