Motiva Enterprises LLC, a U.S.-based gasoline and diesel unit of Saudi Arabian oil and gas company Saudi Aramco, plans to invest roughly $6.6 billion in its refinery in Port Arthur, Texas to expand into the petrochemical business.
With the investments, Motiva will build a new $4.7 billion steam cracker to produce ethylene, polyethene and other petrochemicals to start operations in the first quarter of 2020.
Motiva also intends to build a $1.9 billion plant to produce benzene and paraxylene, byproducts of gasoline production while producing 636,500 barrels per day capacity of oil.
Both projects would come in the fourth quarter of 2022, if the company decides to move forward with the investments and receives the necessary permitting.