Contract let for Louisiana methanol complex

Feb. 11, 2015
Yuhuang Chemical Inc., a subsidiary of Shandong Yuhuang Chemical Co. Ltd., has let a contract to Air Liquide SA, Paris, to supply oxygen for its $1.85-billion methanol manufacturing complex to be built along the Mississippi River in St. James Parish, La.

Yuhuang Chemical Inc., a subsidiary of Shandong Yuhuang Chemical Co. Ltd., has let a contract to Air Liquide SA, Paris, to supply oxygen for its $1.85-billion methanol manufacturing complex to be built along the Mississippi River in St. James Parish, La. (OGJ Online, July 18, 2014).

Under the long-term agreement, Air Liquide will deliver Yuhuang Chemical’s planned complex 2,400 tonnes/day of oxygen to be produced from a new air separation unit (ASU) that Air Liquide will invest about $170 million to build in the area, the French company said in a statement.

The energy-efficient ASU, which also will produce nitrogen and argon and connect to Air Liquide’s extensive pipeline systems in Louisiana to ensure reliable supply, is scheduled to be commissioned by second-half 2017, the service provider said.

The new methanol manufacturing complex will produce about 5,000 tonnes/day of methanol, Air Liquide said.

First announced last year, Yuhuang Chemical’s project is to include two methanol plants with a combined capacity of 3 million tonnes/year, as well as a methanol derivatives plant for production of intermediate chemicals.

Construction on the complex is slated to begin in 2016, with the first phase of the methanol project scheduled for start-up by 2018, Yuhuang Chemical said.

Yuhuang Chemical previously awarded contracts to China Huanqiu Contracting & Engineering Corp. for delivery of engineering work on the project, and to Air Liquide Global E&C Solutions for its proprietary MegaMethanol process technology, which the complex will use to convert natural gas to methanol.

While most of the complex’s methanol production will be exported by oceangoing vessels for use in Shandong’s production of downstream chemicals in China, about 20-30% will be shipped by barge and rail to be sold to North American markets, Yuhuang Chemical said.