据《美国化学周刊》6月15日消息，美国企业产品公司（Enterprise Products）正评估在得克萨斯州博蒙特附近投资50亿美元建设乙烷裂解装置。该装置的乙烯生产能力为200万吨/年，将建在企业产品公司位于该州博蒙特附近内奇斯河上的博蒙特海洋西部码头设施。提交给得克萨斯州当地官员的一份申请减税的文件估计，建设工作将于2024年第二季度开始。企业产品公司发言人表示，该公司尚未做出最终投资决定，对该决定或投资时间表的进一步评论还为时过早。

去年12月，企业产品公司联合首席执行官和公司负责石化业务的高级副总裁表示，该公司一直在考虑建造一个裂解装置，以供应那些不想自己建造裂解装置的衍生品生产商。

企业产品公司目前没有乙烯生产资产，但经营着一个乙烯出口终端以及存储和管道资产，作为乙烯制造商的公开市场存储和交易中心。

当前企业产品公司的博蒙特海洋西部码头包括三个深水码头和一个驳船码头，为原油和相关产品的进出口提供便利。

该公司在休斯敦航道的Morgan’s Point设施运营着一个乙烯出口码头，设计产能为100万吨/年的乙烯。该公司最近表示，该终端的实际出口能力达到设计能力的125%。企业产品公司已宣布计划到2023年下半年将出口终端扩大50%，到2025年将其扩大一倍，达到200万吨/年以上。

企业产品公司已经告诉投资者，美国乙烯经济性支持石化扩张，大量的乙烷供应可以支持投资。今年4月，企业产品公司在一次投资者活动上表示，按照目前的经济性，在美国新建一套150万吨/年的乙烷裂解装置比欧洲的石脑油裂解装置多产生10亿美元的利润。

其他油气中游企业也在考虑进入乙烯生产领域。Energy Transfer Partners今年5月表示，该公司也在评估墨西哥湾沿岸的一个裂解装置项目。该公司表示，在做出最终投资决定之前，正与客户进行谈判，以确保达成长期收费协议。

今年3月，总部位于休斯敦的KBR公司宣布，它已从一家未公开的油气中游公司获得了一份合同，该公司将在美国新建一套世界级规模的烯烃装置。KBR表示，这套位于墨西哥湾沿岸的设施每年将能够生产240万吨轻烯烃。

庞晓华 摘译自 《美国化学周刊》

原文如下：

Enterprise Products plans $5-billion US ethylene investment

Enterprise Products is evaluating a $5-billion investment in an ethane cracker near its Beaumont, Texas, site, according to filings with local officials. The plant would have capacity for 2 million metric tons/year (MMt/y) of ethylene. It would be built at Enterprise's Beaumont Marine West terminal facility on the Neches River near Beaumont, Texas. A filing with local Texas officials requesting a tax abatement estimates that construction will start in second-quarter 2024. The company has not made a final investment decision and further comment on decision or investment timelines would be premature, said an Enterprise spokesman

In December, Enterprise co-CEO Jim Teague and Chris D’Anna, the company’s senior vice president of petrochemicals, told that the company had been considering building a cracker to supply derivative producers who don’t want to build a cracker themselves.

Enterprise does not own ethylene production assets today but operates an ethylene export terminal as well as storage and pipeline assets that serve as an open market storage and trading hub for ethylene makers.

Enterprise’s Beaumont Marine West terminal today includes three deepwater docks and one barge dock that facilitate the exporting and importing of crude oil and related products.

The company operates an ethylene export terminal located at its Morgan’s Point facility on the Houston Ship Channel with nameplate capacity to load 1 MMt/y of ethylene. The company said recently that the terminal is operating at 125% of nameplate. Enterprise has announced plans to expand the export terminal 50% by the second half of 2023 and double it to more than 2 MMt/y by 2025.

Enterprise has told investors that US ethylene economics support petrochemical expansion with significant supplies of ethane available to support investment. At current economics a worldscale 1.5 MMt/y ethane cracker generates $1 billion more in profit than a European naphtha cracker, Enterprise said at an investor event in April.

Other midstream players are also considering entering into ethylene production. Energy Transfer Partners said in May that it was evaluating a cracker project along the Gulf Coast, as well. The company said it was in discussions with customers to secure long-term tolling agreements prior to a final investment decision.

In March, KBR (Houston, Texas) announced that it has secured a contract from an undisclosed midstream company for a world-scale US olefins plant. The Gulf Coast facility will be able to produce 2.4 million metric tons of light olefins annually, KBR says.