US ethane will provide INEOS with an attractive source of feedstock for its European cracker complexes for the foreseeable future.
INEOS Europe AG has today announced that it has completed supply and infrastructure agreements that will secure a significant volume of ethane feedstock from the US, for use in its European cracker complexes.
The company has agreed to a long term deal with Range Resources - Appalachia, LLC for the lifting, of ethane from the Marcus Hook Facility from 2015 The agreement is effective upon Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approval of the Mariner East project. Range Resources is one of the leading US independent upstream companies.
David Thompson, Procurement & Supply Chain Director at INEOS Olefins & Polymers Europe says: “The supply deal with Range Resources complements our portfolio of feedstock agreements for our European crackers and will strengthen our competitive position as an ethylene producer in Europe for the foreseeable future”.
INEOS has also finalised Pipeline Transportation Services and Terminal Services Agreements for the shipping of ethane from Houston, Pennsylvania, to Marcus Hook, Pennsylvania, with subsidiaries of Sunoco. The agreements will be valid for a duration of 15 years and will provide INEOS Olefins & Polymers Europe with significant supply options for the future.
It is expected that when completed, the Mariner East Project will transport approximately 70,000 barrels per day of ethane and propane from Houston, Pennsylvania to the Marcus Hook terminal facilities. Ethane will then be separated by fractionation and held in storage ready for shipment to Europe. It is expected that ethane from the Mariner East Project will become available during the first half of 2015.
Commenting on these well timed significant agreements, David Thompson says: “INEOS can now position itself as an attractive customer for upstream companies with interests in the Marcellus, Utica and Upper Devonian gas formations. We will provide these companies with a credible option to diversify sales and supply ethane into our downstream cracker complexes in Europe”.
Media contact:
Richard Longden – INEOS Group AG
Tel: +41 (0) 21 627 7063
Email: richard.longden@ineos.com
Charles Saunders - INEOS Americas
Tel: +1 (0) 281 535 6630
Email: charles.saunders@ineos.com
Note to Editors
INEOS Olefins & Polymers Europe operates as a business unit within Ineos Europe AG and holds a pivotal position in the European market, both as a top tier manufacturer and leading industry supplier to the market. Our olefins portfolio in Europe is built around four key integrated cracker and derivative complexes:
- Grangemouth, United Kingdom
- Köln, Germany
- Lavéra, France (called Naphtachimie – a 50:50 joint venture between INEOS & TOTAL Petrochemicals)
- Rafnes, Norway
Our Polyolefins capabilities position the business in Europe as a top tier manufacturer and leading industry supplier to the PE and PP market.
INEOS (www.ineos.com) is one of the world’s leading chemicals companies; a global manufacturer of petrochemicals, specialty chemicals and oil products. Comprising 15 businesses, with a production network spanning 51 manufacturing facilities in 12 countries. The company produces more than 40 million tonnes of petrochemicals. INEOS employs 15,000 people and has sales of around $42bn.
The Mariner East Project is a pipeline, processing and terminalling project that will interconnect the natural gas liquids resources in southwest Pennsylvania to Sunoco’s existing infrastructure and international port at its Marcus Hook facility near Philadelphia.
Range Resources Corporation is a leading independent oil and natural gas producer with operations focused in Appalachia and the southwest region of the United States. The Company pursues an organic growth strategy targeting high return, low-cost projects within its large inventory of low risk, development drilling opportunities. The Company is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. More information about Range can be found at www.rangeresources.com and www.myrangeresources.com.
Sunoco Logistics Partners L.P. (www.sunocologistics.com) is headquartered in Philadelphia. The company owns and operates a logistics business consisting of a number of complementary pipeline, terminalling and crude oil assets. The group owns approximately 5,400 miles of crude oil pipelines, located principally in Oklahoma and Texas. It also owns approximately 200 crude oil transport trucks and approximately 120 crude oil truck unloading facilities. It has approximately 42 million barrels of refined products and crude oil terminal capacity (including approximately 22 million shell barrels of capacity at the Nederland Terminal on the Gulf Coast of Texas and approximately 5 million shell barrels of capacity at the Eagle Point terminal on the banks of the Delaware River in New Jersey). The company’s Refined Products Pipelines segment consists of approximately 2,500 miles of pipelines located in the northeast, midwest and southwest United States, and equity interests in four other refined products pipelines.