LyondellBasell has postponed its exit from its refining business from the end of 2023 to the first quarter of 2025, at the latest, the company has announced.
Moderate maintenance is expected to support the delay of the shutdown but the company emphasised that it remained committed to ceasing operation of its oil refining business.
The delay will allow more time to minimise workforce impact, said Lyondell Basell. As well, it will
smooth the transition between the shutdown and the implementation of the retrofitting and circular projects.
The company plans to transform the refining site and to ready this for growth that in the future will be based on the development of sustainable solutions. Plans are in place to for the 700-acre site to be integrated into a Houston regional hub for the company’s growing Circular and Low Carbon Solutions business and to support the growth of the LyondellBasell Circulen product portfolio. Already, the company has a suite of future projects in the early stages of development, noted Peter Vanacker, CEO of LyondellBasell.
Multiple options are being evaluated including recycled and renewably-based feedstocks and green and blue hydrogen. The growth projects under development would connect to existing assets in the Houston area and use existing infrastructure on the refining site including hydrotreaters, pipelines, tanks, utilities, buildings, and laboratories.