Name of the Project
Lake Charles Chemicals Project (LCCP).

Location
Louisiana, US.

Project Owner/s
Sasol.

Project Description
The LCCP comprises a world-scale 1.54-million-ton-a-year ethane cracker and derivatives complex near Lake Charles, in the southern US state of Louisiana.

The project also includes six downstream chemicals projects.

Two large polymer plants – a low-density and linear low-density polyethylene (LDPE) plant, and an ethylene oxide/ethylene glycol (EO/EG) plant – will use about two-thirds of the ethylene produced, while three smaller, higher-value derivative plants will use the balance to produce speciality alcohols, ethoxylates (ETO) and other products.

The ETO has a nameplate capacity of 100 000 t/y and completes the ethylene oxide value chain, which forms part of the performance chemicals product range.

The LCCP will use about 100 000 bbl/d of ethane, sourced from suppliers that feed ethane into Mont Belvieu, Texas. While Sasol expects ethane prices to rise, it remains confident of feed-stock availability, having contracted 70% of its supply and buying the balance opportunistically on the spot market.

The petrochemicals complex is expected to almost triple Sasol’s chemical production capacity in the US.

Potential Job Creation
In August 2019, Sasol stated that the project had generated more than 800 full-time quality manufacturing jobs, with up to 6 500 people on site during construction, $4-billion spent on Louisiana businesses and nearly $200-million on local and state taxes.

Capital Expenditure
The cost of the LCCP has been revised from between $11.6-billion and $11.8-billion, announced in February 2019, to between $12.6-billion and $12.9-billion, announced in May 2019.

Planned Start/End Date
The new EO/EG production facility at the LCCP reached beneficial operation in June 2019. The ethane cracker reached beneficial operation in August 2019.

The ETO unit – the fourth of seven units – at the LCCP achieved beneficial operation in January 2020.

Latest Developments
Manufacturing facilities at the LCCP remain shut as a result of Hurricane Laura, which made landfall near the project on August 27.

The group activated its inclement weather protocols at the complex in preparation for the hurricane.

Part of the response was to temporarily shut down facilities at the project, as well as Greens Bayou and Winnie, in Texas.

The storm resulted in widespread electrical blackouts and other damage, preventing Sasol from operating most utility systems.

High-voltage transmission line corridors into the Lake Charles area are damaged and the full assessment is still in progress by a local power company, the group has reported.

Further, an operations recovery crew has started the damage assessment process at the Lake Charles site and early reports indicate that there was no apparent damage to process equipment and no flooding damage as a result of storm surge.

However, the high wind speeds caused damage to the cooling towers at the complex, while other Sasol manufacturing operations in Greens Bayou and Winnie were not impacted on by the storm.

The startup of the plants will depend on the availability of electricity, industrial gases, other feedstocks and the restoration process.

Sasol does not envisage that the hurricane will have an adverse impact on any potential divestment transaction pertaining to Sasol’s base chemical portfolio in the US, the group points out

Key Contracts and Suppliers
Fluor Corporation and Technip joint venture (engineering, procurement and construction management contract).

Contact Details for Project Information
Sasol director of public affairs (US) Russell Johnson, tel +1 281 588 3027 or email media@us.sasol.com.
Sasol (South Africa) group media relations head Alex Anderson, tel +27 11 441 3295 or email alex.anderson@sasol.com.