Shell advances AO capacity expansion at Geismar plant

Royal Dutch Shell PLC subsidiary Shell Chemical LP has started construction on a $717-million project to increase alpha olefins (AO) production at its Geismar, La., chemical manufacturing plant, which post-expansion, will become the largest AO production site in the world.

Shell Chemical and general construction contractor Turner Industries Group LLC, Baton Rouge, formally broke ground on the 3-year expansion project in a ceremony held on Feb. 16, the Louisiana Economic Development (LED) said.

The AO-4 expansion, which will add a fourth AO unit and boost the Geismar site’s production capacity by 425,000 tonnes/year to an overall 1.3 million tpy, is scheduled to be commissioned in early 2018, LED reported.

Start of construction follows a late-2015 announcement by Shell that it had reached final investment decision to proceed with the project (OGJ Online, Nov. 30, 2015).

Contact Robert Brelsford at [email protected].