LaPorte, Texas, has emerged as the winning site of a massive new high density polyethylene resin plant from LyondellBasell Industries.
LaPorte was one of five LyondellBasell sites in Texas being considered for the project. The firm — with headquarters in Houston and London — currently makes ethylene in LaPorte, Channelview and Corpus Christi and PE in Victoria and Matagorda.
The plant will use the firm's new, proprietary Hyperzone technology and will have annual production capacity of 1.1 billion pounds, officials said in a Sept. 9 news release. It's expected to create 1,000 construction jobs and up to 75 permanent jobs. Construction will begin early next year, with start-up expected in 2019.
HDPE made at the new plant will be used in numerous applications such as pipe, bottles, containers and fuel tanks. Enhanced PE properties from Hyperzone include improved stress crack resistance and enhanced balance between stiffness and impact strength.
LyondellBasell is already one of the world's largest producers of PE and polypropylene. Several North American PE firms have capacity expansions under way as a result of newfound supplies of natural gas in the region.