Odebrecht lets contract for planned W.Va. cracker

Brazil-based Odebrecht SA has let a contract to Ineos Technologies Ltd. for polyethylene (PE) production technology to be used at its proposed Appalachian Shale Cracker Enterprise (Ascent) petrochemical complex in Wood County, W.Va. (OGJ Online, Nov. 15, 2013).

Under the agreement, Ineos will provide its proprietary Innovene S and Innovene G technologies to equip the complex to produce a full range of linear low-density PE (LLDPE) and high-density PE (HDPE), parent company Ineos AG said.

Ineos’s Innovene S slurry technology is used to produce mono and bi-modal HDPE, while the Innovene G swing gas phase technology produces both HDPE and LLDPE, the company said.

A value of the contract was not disclosed.

Ineos previously signed PE licensing agreements with Braskem Idesa SAPI, Philadelphia, to provide Innovene S technology for its $3 billion Etileno XXI petrochemical complex in the Coatzacoalcos-Nanchital region of the Mexican state of Veracruz, which remains on schedule for commissioning in 2015, Ineos said (OGJ, July 7, 2014, p. 90).

While Odebrecht already has secured a purchase option on the anticipated Ascent project site in Parkersburg, W.Va., the complex and all related supply agreements remain contingent on Odebrecht reaching final investment and construction decisions following the completion of a multiyear feasibility analysis.

First announced in November 2013, the Ascent complex would include an ethane cracker, three PE plants, and associated infrastructure for water treatment and energy cogeneration.

In March, Odebrecht subsidiary Odebrecht Oil & Gas SA tapped Antero Resources Inc. to become the anchor ethane supplier for Ascent (OGJ Online, Mar. 28, 2014). Under that agreement, Antero will supply the complex 30,000 b/d of ethane, which represents almost half of the volume required to operate the plant’s planned ethane cracker.

The Ascent project also has secured ethane supplies from Range Resources Corp., according to an August presentation to investors by Odebrecht subsidiary Braskem America, who will be responsible for petrochemical-related activities for the complex, including the marketing of the plant’s PE production.

In addition to securing long-term ethane supply agreements, however, the project’s feasibility also depends on financing, regulatory approvals, and government support, Odebrecht said.

A timetable for the project still has not been disclosed.