Shell Announces FID for Pennsylvania Petrochemical Complex

Shell Chemical Appalachia LLC (Shell) announced June 7 that it has taken the final investment decision (FID) to build a major petrochemical complex, comprising an ethylene cracker with a polyethylene (PE) derivatives unit, near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. Main construction will start in approximately 18 months, with commercial production expected to begin early in the next decade.

Petrochemical demand revolves around polyethylene.

The complex will use low-cost ethane from shale gas producers in the Marcellus and Utica basins to produce 1.6 million tonnes of PE per year. PE is used in many products, from food packaging and containers to automotive components.

The facility will be built on the banks of the Ohio River in Potter Township, Beaver County, about 30 miles northwest of Pittsburgh. As a result of its close proximity to gas feedstock, the complex, and its customers, will benefit from shorter and more dependable supply chains, compared to supply from Gulf Coast petrochemical facilities. The location is also ideal because more than 70% of North American PE customers are within a 700-mile radius of Pittsburgh.

The project will bring new growth and jobs to the region, with up to 6,000 construction workers involved in building the new facility, and an expected 600 permanent employees when completed. “Shell Chemicals has recently announced final investment decisions to expand alpha olefins production at our Geismar site in Louisiana and, with our partner CNOOC in China, to add a world-scale ethylene cracker with derivative units to our existing complex there,” said Graham van’t Hoff, Executive Vice President for Royal Dutch Shell plc’s global Chemicals business.