Oxea said its new world-scale propanol production unit at its Bay City site in Texas is mechanically complete. The new facility “Propanol 2” is now being commissioned and is scheduled for commercial production in the third quarter of 2018. With a nameplate capacity of 100,000 mt per annum of n‑propanol, Propanol 2 is currently one of Oxea’s largest investment projects. Propanol 2 will produce less undesirable byproducts due to optimized and more efficient production.
 
“At Oxea, work safety was paramount for the plant construction project, and accordingly we achieved an exceptional health and safety performance. Despite challenges like delays due to Hurricane Harvey, the construction of Propanol 2 is currently ahead of schedule and within budget. The collaboration between our experienced and highly qualified project, construction management, and construction contractor teams and the Oxea operations group was outstanding,” said Markus Heuwes, Propanol 2 project director at Oxea. 
 
“Propanol 2 has been constructed in line with our long-term selective growth strategy driven by our CEO, Dr. Salim Al Huthaili, and will be a game changer to the markets. With our new additional capacity, Oxea can expand further into existing and future growth markets. Propanol 2 is also a token of our confidence in the competitiveness of the U.S. petrochemical industry and underlines the importance of our Bay City production site,” added Naoko Roth, Oxea’s marketing director U.S. Oxo Intermediates.