Chevron Phillips Chemical and QatarEnergy on Wednesday said they have reached a final investment decision to build an $8.5 billion polymers facility in Orange, Texas.
The agreement is part of a larger move by oil companies preparing for a future in which oil is used less to produce energy but still indispensable for making non-energy goods such as plastics, a type of polymer.
The facility is expected to be operational in 2026. It will make polyethylene, the most common plastic, for production of goods from coolers, to water or gas pipes and packaging.
In its road map to reach net zero emissions by 2050, the International Energy Agency says the world would still need about 25% of today’s oil production for plastics, goods and other chemical applications.
The companies are already partners in Qatar. The pair created a joint venture company for the Texas project, Golden Triangle Polymers Company LLC, in which Chevron Phillips has a 51% equity stake while QatarEnergy owns the rest.
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This is Qatar’s largest petrochemical investment ever, says the energy minister and chief executive of QatarEnergy, Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi.
“This important project will complement QatarEnergy’s growing portfolio, both internationally as well as in the United States,” Al-Kaabi said in a statement.
Chevron Phillips Chemical is equally owned by Chevron U.S.A. Inc. and Phillips 66 Co, and is headquartered in The Woodlands, Texas.
The company said the plant is expected to create more than 500 full-time jobs and approximately 4,500 construction jobs.
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