Houston, Texas - Lyondell Chemical Co. will restart production at its propylene oxide/styrene monomer (PO/SM) unit at Channelview, Texas, in September 2009, the company said recently. The units were idled temporarily in Dec 2008 because of the economic downturn.
"Market conditions for propylene oxide are improving and we have the available capacity to support the increased demand," said Patrick Quales, senior vice president of intermediates & derivatives for LyondellBasell. "Having three world-scale PO facilities in North America and three in Europe provides us with considerable flexibility," he added.
Including its two units at Channelview, LyondellBasell has the capacity to produce 726 000 tonnes of PO per year at facilities in the US, Europe and Asia. (RD)
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