Dow Chemical has completed a massive ethane cracker plant in Freeport, Texas—a project that been donned the “crown jewel” of its $6 billion expansion along the Gulf Coast.
FuelFix.com reports the cracker facility will churn out 1.5 million metric tons a year of ethylene, which is derived from natural gas liquids and is used as the primary building block of most plastics. The plant, which is part of Dow’s sprawling complex in Freeport and Lake Jackson, won’t fully commence operations until the middle of this year.
“The Freeport ethylene unit is the cornerstone of our $6 billion investment in the U.S. Gulf Coast,” says Dow Chairman and CEO Andrew Liveris. “Our growth investments leverage the advantaged shale gas supply available in the U.S.”
The ethane cracker is expected to come online about the same time Dow completes its $130 billion merger with DuPont. The combination received conditional approval Monday from the European Union, but the U.S. Justice Department review remains pending.
