Braskem Ides to Inaugurate Ethylene XXI Project in Mexico
Mexico: Braskem Idesa, a 75:25 joint
venture between Braskem and Idesa, is expected to initiate its petrochemical
complex, Ethylene XXI in Nanchital, Mexico. The petrochemical complex is worth
USD5.2 billion and the three downstream facilities have a total polyethylene
(PE) production capacity of 1.05 million metric tons. per year. The project contains
an ethane cracker along with two high-density PE (HDPE) production units and
one low-density (LDPE) production unit. The plant began HDPE production in April
2016 and the LDPE plant is scheduled to be commissioned by the end of June
2016. Initially, 50% of the total production output would be allocated for domestic
marketing in Mexico, while the other 50% of the output would be exported in the
international markets, including North America, Central America, Europe and Asia.
Gowever, 80%-90% of the total production output is planned to be sold to the
Mexican market over the next five years. The company signed an ethane supply
agreement for 20 years with Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex) in order to fulfil the
plant’s feedstock demand.
TechSci Research depicts that
the establishment of the Braskem
Idesa’s petrochemical complex in
Mexico is anticipated to reduce the petrochemicals import in Mexico and address
the domestic demand of polyethylene in the Mexican market, which is expected to
witness an average growth of 3%-4% over the next few years.
According to a recent report
published by TechSci Research, “Global
Butadiene Market Forecast
and Opportunities, 2020”, global butadiene market is expected to
cross 13 million metric tons in volume terms by 2020. Butadiene is obtained as a
by-product during the production of ethylene and propylene by two different
types of processes: Dehydrogenation and Steam cracking.
The yield of
butadiene is directly related to feedstock, i.e. heavier the feedstock, higher
would be the butadiene yield. LyondellBasell, Royal Dutch Shell, TPC
Corporation, BASF are some of the leading global players involved in the
production of butadiene.