OREANDA-NEWS. December 31, 2014. PETRONAS announced that PETRONAS Refinery and Petrochemical Corporation Sdn. Bhd. (PRPC) has selected US-based LyondellBasell’s Spherizone and Spheripol polypropylene process technologies for a 900-kilotonne per annum (ktpa) polypropylene (PP) plant to be constructed within the PETRONAS’ Refinery and Petrochemical Integrated Development (RAPID) complex in Pengerang, Johor, northern of Malaysia.
 
PRPC Project RAPID Deputy Project Director for Petrochemicals, Datuk Nur Iskandar A. Samad said the selection of both the Spherizone and Spheripol process technologies will provide PETRONAS with a wide range of premium-quality and differentiated PP products, used in many application areas, across industries, from automotive to household products.

Key features of the Spherizone technology include a large range of high-performance PP and novel polyolefinic resins with expanded properties, while Spheripol is the leading polypropylene technology for the production of high quality homopolymer, random and heterophasic copolymers.

LyondellBasell, which is headquartered in Houston, is a leading licensor of polypropylene and polyethylene technologies with more than 250 polyolefin process licenses. The company is currently preparing the Front End Engineering and Design (FEED) work to develop a detailed scope, execution plan and cost estimate for the Polypropylene plant and it is expected to be completed by February next year. The Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Commissioning (EPCC) phase is scheduled to start in November 2015 and plant mechanical completion expected in July 2018.

Developed within a 6,242-acres site in Pengerang, RAPID is part of the PETRONAS Pengerang Integrated Complex (PIC) development aimed at establishing new engines of growth for Malaysia, while meeting the country’s future energy requirement. The project is also geared at strengthening PETRONAS’ position as a key player in the Asian chemicals market, focusing on differentiated and specialty chemicals.

The USD27 billion project involves construction and commissioning of RAPID and its associated facilities including the Pengerang Co-generation Plant, LNG Re-gasification terminal, Air Separation Unit, Raw Water Supply project as well as its Liquid Bulk Terminal and other central and shared utilities and facilities. PIC is poised for its refinery start-up by early 2019.