LyondellBasell to develop flagship PO/TBA plant on US Gulf coast

LONDON (ICIS)–LyondellBasell is to develop a world-scale propylene oxide (PO) and tertiary butyl alcohol (TBA) plant on the US Gulf coast, the Netherlands-registered, US-headquartered chemicals producer said on Monday.

Slated to be operation by 2019 according to the company’s preliminary timetable, the unit will have an estimated capacity of over 400,000 tonnes/year of PO and over 900,000 tonnes/year of TBA and its derivatives, LyondellBasell added.

The decision to develop the plant was prompted by the drop in natural gas prices in the US on the back of the shale gas boom, according to Pat Quarles, LyondellBasell senior vice president of intermediates and derivatives.

“While we have not finalised the exact location of the plant, the abundant natural gas liquids associated with shale gas make the US Gulf coast an advantaged feedstock region,” he said.

The project is expected to create 1,200 constructions jobs at the peak of its development, the company added.