Investments in Storage Tanks Remain a Staple in the Chemical Processing Industry

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--The matter phase of most chemicals both processed and produced in a chemical plant are in the form of a liquid or gas. For this reason, it is not surprising that the construction of new storage tanks and tank repairs are among the most common projects routinely found in chemical plants. Industrial Info is tracking nearly 170 Chemical Processing Industry (CPI) capital projects, in which a new tank installation or major repair has been identified, that are planned to kick off over the next 12 months as part of the North American Project Database.

On many occasions, these tank projects are the result of a plant or unit expansion in which the additional demand on product storage or transport had deemed it necessary. The remainder of the time, the expense of a new tank or major repair is driven as part of a compliance or inspection standard. Large tanks storing 100,000 gallons or more of just about any material require periodic or annual inspections to ensure safety, coatings and corrosion resistance. These inspections are generally not costly yet they play a vital role in ensuring the useful life of these expensive assets.

Tank-bottom replacements can be costly and are inevitable in some cases for larger tanks, especially those containing unusually high corrosive materials. Dow Chemical Company (NYSE:DOW) (Midland, Michigan) is faced with just such a project at its Ludington, Michigan, plant site. Dow is in the process of replacing the bottoms for multiple tanks in this calcium chloride and bromine chemicals plant including some as large as 2 million gallons each that are epoxy lined. INEOS NOVA LLC (Channahon, Illinois) is faced with similar objectives in the coming months with nearly $5 million budgeted toward replacing tank bottoms, containing leakage and decreasing emissions at its Sarnia, Ontario, styrene plant.

The large variety in the types and sizes of tanks, including their construction material of metal or plastic, and sizes from a few gallons to millions of gallons, presents a tremendous opportunity for equipment and service providers of this industry. The CPI is incredibly dependent on quality storage tanks to store product, feedstock and stage production processes.

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Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is a marketing information service specializing in industrial process, energy and financial related markets with products and services ranging from industry news, analytics, forecasting, plant and project databases, as well as multimedia services.