A joint venture for a proposed large petrochemical plant in Louisiana has signed on The Woodlands-based CB&I today to perform the early engineering and services work.
As FuelFix.com reports, South Korea’s Lotte Chemical Corp. and Atlanta-based Axiall Corp. finalized the agreements in June on their LACC joint venture to build an ethane cracker plant in Lake Charles. The cracker would make ethylene, which is the primary building block of most plastics. The plant would produce about 1 million metric tons of ethylene a year.
The deal with CB&I, which is domiciled in the Netherlands but operates out of The Woodlands and has offices in Baton Rouge, is the first major contractor brought on board.
There are $147 billion in petrochemical and manufacturing projects underway or planned in the U.S. through 2023, most of which are in Texas and Louisiana, according to the American Chemistry Council. The companies are not releasing project and contract costs, but new ethane crackers typically are multibillion-dollar projects.
“CB&I has worked closely with Axiall Corporation and Lotte Chemical to develop this project from the beginning,” says Patrick Mullen, president of CB&I’s engineering and construction operating group, in a prepared statement. “We are pleased to affirm our relationship with both companies and look forward to supporting this important initiative.”
A final investment decision on moving forward with the project is still expected by the end of the year. CB&I says the project would use its latest ethylene technology, including its highly selective SRT cracking heaters. The companies did not respond to additional requests for comment and information from FuelFix.com today.
If the project moves forward as planned, Lotte Chemical says it also will build a monoethylene glycol plant next to the cracker, but without Axiall’s involvement. Monoethylene glycol is a raw material used to make everything from polyester resins to antifreeze and coolants.
