Shell has selected Louisiana’s Ascension Parish as the potential site for its Gulf Coast natural gas-to-liquids facility.
On September 24, 2013, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal and Royal Dutch Shell announced selection of Louisiana’s Ascension Parish as the site for a proposed Gulf Coast natural gas-to-liquids (GTL) plant, a cost of least $12.5 billion. Shell will also fund road improvement projects associated with facility construction and operation. The road projects, estimated to cost $32 million, are set to begin this year and would be completed in 2016. The State of Louisiana has offered Shell an incentive package including a $112 million performance-based grant to reimburse the costs of road expansions, land acquisition, and infrastructure.
The proposed GTL project is expected to create 740 direct jobs with an average annual salary of approximately $100,000. Louisiana State University’s economic impact analysis estimates the project to create approximately 3,900 indirect jobs. It also estimates a total economic impact of $77.6 billion through the construction phase and 15-year operational phase.
Shell would receive the services of LED FastStart, the top U.S. state workforce training program and qualify for Louisiana’s Competitive Projects Payroll Incentive and Industrial Tax Exemption Program. The proposed GTL facility would produce natural gas-based diesel, jet fuels, specialty waxes, and raw materials for lubricants, plastics, and detergents. It presents a major opportunity for Shell to potentially expand its operations onshore. Shell, a leading Gulf of Mexico producer with an annual capacity of approximately 150 million barrels, holds 3,500 patents related to natural-gas-to-liquids technology. It began production at the world’s largest GTL facility in Qatar last year.
September 25, 2013 via Energy Solutions Forum
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