Two years after breaking ground on its multibillion-dollar ethane cracker and derivatives complex in Westlake, Sasol last week paid Calcasieu Parish the first installment of its development permit fee.
Parish Administrator Bryan Beam tells The American Press other companies that have built projects in the parish—like Lotte Chemical—either paid in full or began paying in installments within the first three months after the start of construction.
Calcasieu allowed Sasol, like Lotte, to spread the fee out over a three-year period, he says. The unprecedented size of the $11 billion project, however, made it more difficult to determine the fee amount, resulting in one reason for Sasol’s late payment.
Based on project costs, Beam says, the parish set the fee at $911,425, slightly lower than the original estimate.
On June 1, Sasol paid $227,856, he says. The company will pay another installment in the same amount June 2018 and make a final installment of $455,713 on June 2019.
