Possible World-scale Petrochemical Complex

Shell Chemical announced on Thursday, March 15^th, the securing of the land for a major chemical industry facility, to utilize ethane from shale gas, on the Ohio River about 25 miles downstream of Pittsburgh. This industrial site is actually in Beaver County, close to Allegheny and Washington counties, and close to the northern panhandle of West Virginia. 

More news on the Ethane Cracker has been posted on the State Impact web-site by National Public Radio.   In fact, NPR reports that 5% of the recently established “impact fee” to be collected from natural gas production in Pennsylvania will go to infrastructure improvements of benefit to the industry.  This is described here.

See also the post on this blog for February 1, 2012, which is a “Special Report on Possible Ethane Cracker Plants in WV, PA, & OH.”

/2012/02/01/special-report-on-possible-ethane-cracker-plants-in-wv-pa-and-oh/

Chemical industry analysts can see a potential glut of petrochemical feedstocks relative to demand growth in the years ahead. See the following presentation entitled “US Shale Gas Boom May Lead to a Petrochemical Excess” . . .

/2012/02/14/us-shale-gas-boom-may-lead-to-a-petrochemical-excess/