North America to Remain Competitive as Chemical Producing Region, says ExxonMobil Chemical Senior Vice President
26 March 2015 - 6:30AM
Business Wire
ExxonMobil sees North America's chemical feedstock and energy
costs remaining among the lowest in the world, Matt Aguiar, senior
vice president at ExxonMobil Chemical Company, said today in a
speech at the IHS World Petrochemical Conference.
ExxonMobil says U.S. chemical industry
export capacity will increase as planned expansions move forward,
including the company's project at Baytown, Texas, where about
4,000 workers have been on site for the construction that has been
underway for 10 months. The ExxonMobil expansion will be completed
in 2017. (Eric Kayne/AP Images for ExxonMobil)
“We expect North America to remain competitive with other
regions as a chemical producer. And we see continued growth in
jobs, growth in production and growth in U.S. chemical exports,”
Aguiar said.
Aguiar explained that the petrochemical industry is the world's
largest industrial energy user, and the only one that uses energy
for both fuel and feedstock. “Today, the production of chemicals
accounts for about 15 percent of global oil demand and 10 percent
of natural gas demand – and includes more than 45 percent of the
demand for natural gas liquids,” he said.
He pointed out that U.S. output of ethane, propane and other
natural gas liquids has risen by more than 65 percent since 2008.
“American chemical producers will continue to have an abundant
long-term supply of ethane and other natural gas liquids for
feedstock,” he said.
Rising production of natural gas liquids, or NGLs, is driving a
global shift toward NGLs as a chemical feedstock, Aguiar said.
“Naphtha remains the number one steam-cracker feedstock, accounting
for more than 50 percent of global demand. Ethane and other NGLs
are second, at about 30 percent. However, ExxonMobil sees demand
for NGL feedstock rising by about 125 percent through 2040,
compared to 70 percent for naphtha. As a result, we expect NGLs to
surpass naphtha as the top feedstock in the chemical sector by
around 2025.”
The American Chemistry Council projects that U.S. exports of
plastics and other chemical products will double from 2014 to 2030,
Aguiar pointed out. “Export capacity will increase as planned U.S.
chemical expansions move forward, including ExxonMobil's project at
Baytown, Texas,” he said.
Construction at ExxonMobil’s project has been underway for 10
months, Aguiar said. “During this time, we have had about 4,000
workers on site representing a range of disciplines, including
carpenters, electricians, welders, and ironworkers,” he said.
“Foundation and underground work will be completed over the next
few months, followed by installation of steel structures and
equipment, and then piping, electrical and instrumentation.”
When the Baytown expansion is completed in 2017, ExxonMobil will
have added 1.5 million tons per year of steam-cracker capacity. The
ethylene feedstock will be used for downstream chemical processing,
including processing at two new 650,000-tons-per-year
high-performance polyethylene lines at the company’s Mont Belvieu
plastics plant.
The expansion is creating a total of 10,000 construction jobs
and is projected to add 4,000 new, permanent local jobs, including
350 positions at the ExxonMobil plants.
About ExxonMobil Chemical
ExxonMobil Chemical is one of the largest petrochemical
companies worldwide. The company holds leadership positions in some
of the largest-volume and highest-growth commodity petrochemical
products in the world. ExxonMobil chemical has manufacturing
capacity in every major region of the world, serving large and
growing markets. More than 90 percent of the company’s chemical
capacity is integrated with large refineries or natural gas
processing plants.
To learn more, visit www.exxonmobilchemical.com.
Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available:
http://www.businesswire.com/multimedia/home/20150325006130/en/
ExxonMobil ChemicalDevan Dalcol, 972-444-4707 or
518-859-8330
Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2024 to May 2024
Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM)
Historical Stock Chart
From May 2023 to May 2024