Shell seeks ethane through bidding for proposed Beaver County cracker

28-Aug-13

Shell has started a two-month bidding period to solicit ethane commitments from Marcellus Shale operators for its proposed Beaver County cracker. Ethane, a natural gas liquid found in shale gas in western Pennsylvania, can be turned into ethylene. Shell is almost a year away from building the cracker. If Shell Chemical decides to build the first world-scale cracker in the Marcellus region, some of its ethane would come from Shell's own oil and gas production in the region. In addition, commitments have been secured from Consol Energy Inc., Noble Energy Inc., Seneca Resources Corp., and Hilcorp Energy Co. However, the company continues to look for more and the bidders' responses will play a role in whether the company decides to go ahead with the project. It has twice extended its land option agreement with Horsehead Corp. for the property in Monaca that Shell is evaluating for the cracker. "Securing additional ethane supply is one of the key components in determining the next steps as part of the ongoing site evaluation process," Kimberly Windon, a spokeswoman for Shell, said.