Total mulls US$2 bln ethylene cracker in Port Arthur

24-Feb-16

Paris-based Total considers a proposed US$2 bln steam cracker in Port Arthur that would produce up to 2.2 mln lbs of ethylene a year. A final decision to green-light the project is expected in the third quarter of the year, said Philippe Sauquet, Total’s president of refining and chemicals in an interview at the IHS Energy CERAWeek conference. The project could be completed in 2019. Total has hired The Woodlands-based CB&I to do the front-end engineering and design work on the cracker, and is seeking an investment partner on the project, possibly for up to 50%, Sauquet said, but the company has prospects lined up. In order to help finance the project, Total also wants to sell a 50% stake in its adjacent Port Arthur gasoline refinery, which is Total’s only U.S. fuel refinery.