Phillips 66 to launch $1.5 billion expansion of Sweeny hub

Phillips 66 said Wednesday that it would expand its Sweeny Hub near Old Ocean as part of a $1.5 billion project to transport and process more natural gas liquids amid a boom in Gulf Coast petrochemicals manufacturing.

The Houston refining company plans to construct two units to process mixed natural gas liquids into separate components including ethane, propane and butane — all feedstocks used to make petrochemicals or certain types of fuel. Each unit will have the capacity to process 150,000 barrels a day.

It also plans to build additional pipelines and storage to support the expanded operations. The project is expected to start up in late 2020.

In a statement, CEO Greg Garland said the expansion will better position the facility to capitalize on booming production in the Permian Basin in West Texas. Drilling there has unleashed a steady supply of low-cost natural gas that has supported some $60 billion in petrochemicals investments along the Gulf Coast.

The project is expected to support 2,000 construction-related jobs and 25 full-time jobs. When the expansion is complete, the facility will have the capacity to process and separate 400,000 barrels of natural gas liquids a day.

Phillips 66 has for months been expanding its petrochemicals manufacturing capacity through Chevron Phillips Chemical Co., its joint venture with oil producer Chevron.

Chevron Phillips Chemical earlier this year began operating an ethane cracker at its Cedar Bayou complex in Baytown. The cracker, the company's first new one in decades, processes ethane into ethylene to make plastics.

That ethylene supply supports the production of polyethylene — the world's most common plastic — at the company's Sweeny complex. There, it built two new polyethylene units that began operating in September with the combined capacity to produce 4.4 billion pounds of plastics a year.