LyondellBasell has made the final investment decision to build a high density polyethylene (HDPE) plant on the U.S. Gulf Coast.

The plant will be the first to feature LyondellBasell’s new proprietary “Hyperzone” PE technology and will have an annual capacity of 500,000 metric tons (mt) of HDPE. HDPE is used in various applications such as pipe, bottles, containers, toys, film, healthcare articles, plastic fuel tanks and industrial packaging.

The project is expected to create up to 1,000 jobs at the peak of construction and about 75 permanent positions, the company stated. Start-up for the plant is planned for 2019.

“Innovation is key to our future success. This new proprietary technology will have the capability to produce a wide range of HDPE products with enhanced properties, many of which have the potential to exceed industry benchmarks,” LyondellBasell CEO Bob Patel said in a statement.

The Hyperzone PE technology is described as a cascade gas phase process based on LyondellBasell’s “Multizone” circulating reactor technology. According to the company, the technology will have the capability to produce a wide range of high-performance multimodal HDPE products, which will serve markets globally. The Hyperzone PE resins, in certain applications, will enable customers “to use less PE resin per unit produced, resulting in improved resource efficiency and savings for customers,” according to LyondellBasell. The technology was developed at the company’s R&D centers in Frankfurt, Germany, and Ferrara, Italy

“We are continuing to invest in growth-oriented projects like Hyperzone PE, where we see long-term feedstock advantage,” Patel said. “We believe that the combination of our latest polyolefins technology and new ethylene capacity from low-cost debottlenecks will provide a good return on investment. Additionally, this project enhances our ethylene integration strategy, allowing us to capture value across the ethylene value chain."

LyondellBasell said it currently manufactures a total of 3.5 million mt of HDPE annually, including capacity of its joint-venture facilities, and produces of all forms of PE with an annual capacity of 6 million mt.

The company noted that it plans to make Hyperzone available for licensing in the future. LyondellBasell currently has more than 250 polypropylene and PE lines licensed worldwide.

In addition to the HDPE plant, which plays a part in LyondellBasell’s ongoing growth plan, the company said it recently completed work on ethylene expansion projects at its La Porte and Channelview, Texas, sites with a third ethylene expansion currently underway in Corpus Christi, Texas. A world-scale propylene oxide and tertiary butyl alcohol plant is also under development at the company’s Channelview site.

Brandy Jules can be reached at bjules@hartenergy.com.

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