Construction Begins on $450 Million Montreal Purified Terephthalic Acid Plant

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The following is an advisory by Industrialinfo.com (Industrial Information Resources, Inc.; Houston, Texas). Interquisa Canada, a Spanish-Canadian joint venture between Compania Espagnola de Petroleos' (Cepsa) chemical division Interquisa (San Roque, Spain) and Societe Generale de Financement's (SGF-Montreal, Quebec) subsidiary SGF Chemie has started construction of a new Purified Terephthalic Acid (PTA) plant in Montreal, Quebec. The new plant will have an initial capacity slated at 500,000 metric tons per year and will directly employ approximately 140 people. Interquisa, the majority partner with a 51% interest and a major European PTA producer, provided the technology for the plant.

PTA is the main raw material for the production of polyester fiber, and is also used in tire cord, magnetic tape, plastic film, and PET (Polyethylene Terephthalate) bottles. Polyesters based on PTA are used everyday in the packaging products of soft drinks, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, household and other products.

SNC-Dragados Industrial (Montreal, Quebec) is the construction manager for the plant, which is expected to be in operation by late 2002. The paraxylene feedstock required for the production of PTA will be provided from another SGF joint venture formed with Coastal Petrochimie, a subsidiary of El Paso Corporation (Houston, Texas). Coastal's 350,000 metric tons per year paraxylene unit, which was shuttered in 1998, will be reopened at a cost of $135 million.

Interquisa, founded in 1972, is a subsidiary of Compania Espanola de Petroleos (CEPSA), which is the second largest oil company in Spain commanding 25% of the Spanish oil market. Interquisa, the only PTA producer in Spain, also produces Dimethyl Terephthalate (DMT) and Purified Isophthalic Acid (PIPA) at their plant in San Roque, Spain.

The Societe Generale de Financement (SGF) provides businesses with development capital. SGF invests in partnerships, while assuming its share of risk, by taking part in the management of every project it supports. With a focus on Quebec's long-term economic development, SGF chooses projects from natural resources to high technology and has an investment potential of $2 billion over a five-year period.