Bayport Polymers LLC (Bay-Pol)—a joint venture of Total SA 50% and the Borealis AG-Nova Chemicals Inc. JV Novealis Holdings LLC 50%—has officially broken ground on construction of its previously announced project to build a 1 million-tonne/year ethane steam cracker at Total’s 200,000-b/d integrated refining complex in Port Arthur, Tex. (OGJ Online, Feb. 19, 2018; Mar. 27, 2017).
The groundbreaking ceremony for the ethane cracker—the first project under construction by the recently formed Bay-Pol JV—was held on June 4 at the Port Arthur refinery, which also hosts BASF Corp. (60%)-Total (40%) jointly owned BASF Total Petrochemicals LCC’s more than 1 million-tpy ethylene plant.
With the contract award to McDermott International Inc. (formerly CB&I) to provide engineering, construction, and procurement on the project now finalized, Bay-Pol’s ethane steam cracker at Port Arthur remains on schedule for startup in late 2020 at a total investment cost of $1.7 billion, the companies said.
The groundbreaking ceremony follows the start of initial site preparation activities last year (OGJ Online, Mar. 28, 2017).
“This project is in perfect alignment with Total’s strategy to expand in petrochemicals by leveraging our integrated platforms like Port Arthur and taking advantage of the abundance of ethane in the US,” said Bernard Pinatel, Total’s president of refining and chemicals.
Designed to help meet growing global demand for polyethylene (PE) by taking advantage of competitively priced ethane feedstock from US shale production and easy export access to markets abroad, the Bay-Pol JV will enable Total, Nova Chemicals, and Borealis to leverage existing synergies to help further integrate and expand their respective businesses in the Americas, the operators said.
Officially formed in late May following all required regulatory approvals, the Bay-Pol JV also includes Total’s existing 400,000-tpy PE production plant in Bayport, Tex., and the earlier announced 625,000-tpy PE plant based on Borealis’ proprietary Borstar PE process proposed for Total’s Bayport petrochemical production site pending a final investment decision, according to a May 24 joint release from Total, Borealis, and Nova.
A definitive timeline for the proposed Borstar PE plant has yet to be revealed.
Contact Robert Brelsford at [email protected].
