Canada’s Methanex methanol plant in Trinidad idled indefinitely on costs, feedstock supply

LONDON (ICIS)–Methanex’s Titan methanol facility in Trinidad and Tobago will remain idled indefinitely to save costs amid a search for a long-term agreement for its natural gas supply, the Canadian methanol major said on Thursday.

The producer also mentioned the economic uncertainty brought about by the pandemic as another reason to idle the 875,000 tonne/year methanol plant.

The facility was first idled in March 2020 followed by the Chile IV plant due to lower demand following the coronavirus outbreak.

The company added the Atlas methanol site in Trinidad and Tobago is to continue operating as is not affected by the change, due to a separate natural gas supply agreement that expires in 2024.

Atlas has an annual capacity of 1.8m tonnes/year, according to ICIS data.

The company said the restructuring of its operations in Trinidad would entail the reduction of 60 jobs.

“We remain committed to doing business in Trinidad and Tobago and we believe that we will be able to secure an economic longer-term natural gas agreement for Titan in the coming years,” said John Floren, Methanex’s CEO. .

“We are taking the necessary steps to maintain Titan to ensure a safe and efficient restart of the plant when a longer-term gas agreement is reached.”

Methanol is primarily used to produce formaldehyde, methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) and acetic acid. Smaller amounts go into production of dimethyl terephthalate (DMT), methyl methacrylate (MMA), chloromethanes, methylamines, glycol methyl ethers, and fuels applications such dimethyl ether (DME), biodiesel and the direct blending into gasoline.