Polinter Moving Forward with Low-Density Polyethylene Plant in Venezuela

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Petroquimica de Venezuela (Pequiven) (Valencia, Venezuela), through it's subsidary Poliolefinas Internacionales (Polinter) is moving forward with plans to construct a low-density polyethylene unit at the El Tablazo Petrochemical Complex in Zulia State with a total investment cost of about $400 million.

The complex's current capacity for low-density polyethylene is about 80,000 metric tons, and the expansion involves the construction of a second plant with a production capacity of 300,000 metric tons per year, based on Basell's Lupotech T technology. Maire Tecnimont S.p.A. (BIT:MT) (Rome, Italy) was awarded a $121 million contract in January to provide basic engineering design services and for the procurement of long-lead items. The contract is expected to become a turnkey engineering, procurement and construction contract.

Detailed engineering is under way, and construction firms will be selected by April 2009. Construction is scheduled to start in May 2009, with completion expected in July 2012.

This project is part of Polinter's $2.1 billion Olefins III plan, which is aimed at constructing a 1 million-metric-ton-per-year ethylene unit as well as two others: one with a capacity of 300,000 metric tons per year to produce high-density polyethylene and another to produce low-density polyethylene.

Polinter began operation of the El Tablazo Petrochemical Complex in 1999. Its manufacturing facilities consist of a high-density polyethylene, a low-density polyethylene and a linear low-density and high-density polyethylene plant. The plants' current capacity for low-density polyethylene is 80,000 metric tons per year, in addition to the 100,000 metric ton per year of high-density polyethlene and the 210,000 metric tons per year of linear low-density polyethylene and linear high-density polyethlene.

Pequiven, owned by PDVSA, owns a majority 46.01% stake in Polinter, with other partners including the Zuliano Group with 8.06%, International Petrochemical Holding with 29.73%, Sofilago with 13.72%, Mitsui with 1.59% and Cetic with 0.89%.

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