MeadWestvaco Awaits Final Approval of Major Expansion in Louisiana

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Researched by Industrialinfo.com (Industrial Information Resources, Incorporated; Houston, Texas). MeadWestvaco Corporation (Stamford, Connecticut) is expecting final capital approval very soon for a major expansion of its tall oil and gum rosin chemical plant located in DeRidder, Louisiana. MeadWestvaco’s alliance engineer, Ford, Bacon & Davis, Incorporated (FB&D) (Monroe, Louisiana), has prepared the design for this $30 million project that will take place in at least two primary phases when approved.

Approval to complete detailed engineering and purchase long-lead equipment is expected in early November, with construction for the first phase beginning in the first quarter of next year. As the alliance engineer, FB&D will complete the engineering and prepare bid packages for release by MeadWestvaco beginning in January 2006 or even sooner. The project is planned to include the addition of major process columns and production equipment, including additions and retrofits of the wastewater treatment unit, fire protection systems, process controls and instrumentation. The second phase of construction will begin in the summer of 2006, with the completion planned to coincide with a major plant-wide maintenance turnaround in the first quarter of 2007.

The DeRidder plant was offline for a short period of time in September due to hurricane Rita and was spared any major damage. The DeRidder plant has been in operation since the 1930’s and employs nearly 200 people. MeadWestvaco operates a similar tall oil plant located in Charleston, South Carolina employing an estimated 165 people.

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