Final decision on plant likely in May

Exxon Mobil Corp. says it will decide as soon as May whether to move forward with a $10 billion petrochemical complex north of Corpus Christi now that it has the desired tax breaks approved.

The Gregory-Portland School Board approved $460 million in tax breaks Tuesday, just one day after the San Patricio County Commissioners also approved more than $200 million in the property tax abatements. The tax breaks were opposed by many Portland residents, who fear the project, which would be just outside the city limits, would turn their bedroom community into industrial corridor and have a detrimental impact on the character and quality of life of the communities.

“In the weeks and months ahead, we will continue to listen to the community,” Robert Tully, Exxon’s project executive, said in a statement “We will continue to learn from those with whom we have the privilege to dialogue with — regardless of whether or not they support the project.”

The project is a joint venture between Exxon Mobil and the state-owned Saudi Basic Industries Corp., or SABIC. Tully said the partners will wrap up the site selection in the next two or three months and then begin the required permitting processes. They considered three other Texas and Louisiana sites, but always preferred the Corpus Christi region for its proximity to pipelines, railways, highways, employee housing and port access.

The plant, the largest proposed in Texas, would create an estimated 11,000 construction jobs and 600 permanent ones, and feature the world’s biggest ethane cracker, which processes a component of natural gas into ethylene, the primary building block of most plastics.

The project could be completed as soon as 2021.