HOUSTON and LONDON, July 29, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- LyondellBasell (NYSE: LYB), one of the world's largest plastics, chemical and refining companies, has made the final investment decision to build a High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) Plant on the U.S. Gulf Coast. The plant will have an annual capacity of 1.1 billion pounds (500,000 metric tons) and will be the first commercial plant to employ LyondellBasell's new proprietary Hyperzone PE technology.  The project is expected to create up to 1,000 jobs at the peak of construction and as many as 75 permanent positions. Start-up is planned for 2019.

"Innovation is key to our future success.  This new proprietary technology will have the capability to produce a wide range of HDPE products with enhanced properties, many of which have the potential to exceed industry benchmarks," said Bob Patel, LyondellBasell's CEO.

HDPE is used in numerous applications such as pipe, bottles, containers, toys, film, healthcare articles, plastic fuel tanks and industrial packaging.  LyondellBasell's Hyperzone PE enhanced properties include improved stress crack resistance and enhanced balance between stiffness and impact strength.  

The Hyperzone PE technology is a cascade gas phase process based on LyondellBasell's unique Multizone circulating reactor technology and was developed at LyondellBasell's European research and development centers located in Frankfurt, Germany, and Ferrara, Italy.  The new proprietary technology will have the capability to produce a wide range of high-performance multi-modal HDPE products. In certain applications, Hyperzone PE resins allow customers to use less PE resin per unit produced, resulting in improved resource efficiency and savings for customers.  While the Hyperzone PE plant will be located on the U.S. Gulf Coast, the products produced will serve markets across the globe.

"We are continuing to invest in growth-oriented projects like Hyperzone PE, where we see long term feedstock advantage," Patel added.  "We believe that the combination of our latest polyolefins technology and new ethylene capacity from low cost debottlenecks will provide a good return on investment.  Additionally, this project enhances our ethylene integration strategy, allowing us to capture value across the ethylene value chain."

LyondellBasell currently produces a total of 7.8 billion pounds (3.5 million metric tons) of HDPE annually, including capacity of its joint venture facilities. The company is a leading worldwide producer of all forms of PE with an annual capacity of 13.2 billion pounds (6 million metric tons).  Consumer products made from PE are commonly recycled.

LyondellBasell is a global leader in the development and licensing of polyolefin processes and related catalysts and plans to make the Hyperzone PE technology available for licensing in the future. The company has over 250 polypropylene and polyethylene lines licensed worldwide.

The Hyperzone PE project is part of LyondellBasell's ongoing growth plan. Recently, the company completed work on ethylene expansion projects at the company's La Porte and Channelview sites in Texas.  A third ethylene expansion project is currently underway in Corpus Christi, Texas.  Additionally, development of a world scale propylene oxide and tertiary butyl alcohol (PO/TBA) plant at the company's Channelview site is progressing.

About LyondellBasell

LyondellBasell (NYSE: LYB) is one of the world's largest plastics, chemical and refining companies.  The company manufactures products at 57 sites in 18 countries.  LyondellBasell products and technologies are used to make items that improve the quality of life for people around the world including packaging, electronics, automotive parts, home furnishings, construction materials and biofuels.  More information about LyondellBasell can be found at www.lyb.com.

Hyperzone is a trademark owned by the LyondellBasell Industries group of companies.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release includes forward-looking statements and projections, made in reliance on the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The company has made every reasonable effort to ensure that the information and assumptions on which these statements and projections are based are current, reasonable, and complete. Actual results could differ materially based on factors including, but not limited to, our ability to obtain all necessary regulatory approvals and to successfully construct and operate the proposed facilities described in this release; and general economic conditions in geographic regions or markets served by LyondellBasell or where operations of the company are located.  Additional factors that could cause results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements can be found in the "Risk Factors" section of our Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2015, which can be found at www.lyb.com on the Investor Relations page and on the Securities and Exchange Commission's website at www.sec.gov. While the company makes these statements and projections in good faith, neither the company nor its management can guarantee that anticipated future results will be achieved. The company assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements made herein or any other forward-looking statements made by the company, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140416/75605

SOURCE LyondellBasell