Rotterdam, Netherlands – September 8, 2008 – LyondellBasell Industries, through its wholly owned subsidiary Basell Service Company B.V.; the Government of Trinidad and Tobago; The National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago, Ltd. (NGC); National Energy Corporation of Trinidad and Tobago, Ltd. (NEC) and Lurgi GmbH announced today that they have signed a Project Development Agreement. It is intended to provide the relevant framework to govern the relationship among the parties to evaluate jointly the construction and operation of a fully integrated polypropylene complex in Trinidad and Tobago.
The project will include the production of 490 KT of polyolefins based on three world-scale plants, including a methanol plant and a methanol-to-propylene (MTP®) plant. The propylene produced by Lurgi´s MegaMethanol® and MTP® technologies will supply feedstock to a polypropylene plant based on LyondellBasell’s Spherizone technology.
“Our main goal is to establish a sustainable local and regional supply of polyolefins to the emerging local plastics industry, to South American markets where demand is forecasted to increase at an average annual growth rate of 5.2 percent, as well as the existing large North American markets” explained Volker Trautz, Chief Executive Officer of LyondellBasell Industries. Start up of operations is tentatively scheduled for late 2012. The entire project will be undertaken in conjunction with Lurgi GmbH, the industry leader in methanol and MTP® technology.
Trautz added: “We are happy to have the Government of Trinidad and Tobago now joining the project. It will combine the leading position of NGC and NEC in Trinidad and Tobago, with the state-of-the-art technology of LyondellBasell and Lurgi, as well as the marketing capability of LyondellBasell.”
“The thrust of the Government of Trinidad and Tobago is to develop the second and third derivate industries from natural gas. The polyolefin industry is one such industry identified for development as it is viewed as a building block for expansion of the local plastics manufacturing sector”, explained Andrew Jupiter, President (Ag) of NEC.
About LyondellBasell
LyondellBasell Industries is one of the world’s largest polymers, petrochemicals and fuels companies. We are the global leader in polyolefins technology, production and marketing; a pioneer in propylene oxide and derivatives; a significant producer of advanced fuel products; and the owner of one of North America’s largest full-conversion refineries. Through research and development, LyondellBasell develops innovative materials and technologies that deliver exceptional customer value and products that improve quality of life for people around the world. Headquartered in The Netherlands, LyondellBasell (www.lyondellbasell.com) is privately owned by Access Industries.
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