New Plant from TotalEnergies
Bayport Polymers LLC (“Baystar”), a 50/50 joint venture (JV) between TotalEnergies and Borealis, announced today the commercial launch of a new ethane cracker with an annual capacity of one million tons of ethylene.
At peak construction, 14 million hours were worked with over 2,500 workers on this nearly $2 billion project built on the site of and operated by the TotalEnergies Refinery in Port Arthur, Texas.
The cracker’s ethylene will be used as feedstock for Baystar’s existing polyethylene (PE) units, as well as a new Borstar® technology polyethylene unit under construction in Bayport, Texas.
“After significant investments in U.S. LNG and renewable electricity in 2022, the start-up of this new cracker is another milestone strengthening TotalEnergies’ presence in the United States. This investment is in perfect alignment with our strategy to develop petrochemicals at our integrated platforms. At Port Arthur we take advantage of the abundance of ethane in the U.S.,” said Bernard Pinatel, President, Refining & Chemicals, TotalEnergies.
The Baystar JV is the translation of the growth ambitions of TotalEnergies and Borealis in the United States. It includes:
• The Baystar site in Bayport, Texas with a 400,000 ton-per-year PE capacity.
• The one million ton-per-year ethane cracker at the TotalEnergies Port Arthur Refinery, which now has successfully started operations.
• The under-construction 625,000 metric ton-per-year PE unit in Bayport, using the Borealis proprietary Borstar® technology to deliver a broad range of products to help meet the growing global demand for plastic products.
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