Chevron Phillips Chemical has finished expanding its low-viscosity polyalphaolefins production facility in Belgium, nearly doubling annual capacity and making it the largest decene-based low-viscosity PAO plant in Europe by volume, the company said on its website. CPC is the world’s third-largest PAO producer, and the Beringen project closes the gap with second-ranked ExxonMobil.
The Beringen site has been producing PAOs for more than three decades and has easy access to major feedstock sources and established logistics infrastructure. It now has capacity to make 120,000 metric tons of PAO annually, up from the previous 63,000 t/y. This bumps up CPC’s combined capacity to 187,000 t/y, at Beringen and two plants in the United States.
Upgrades at the facility include the integration of advanced electrification technology, designed to reduce dependence on natural gas and lower overall greenhouse gas emissions. CPC is also assessing the potential to use renewable electricity at the site as part of its long-term energy transition initiatives. The company said these steps are intended to improve energy efficiency and reduce the environmental footprint of production.
ExxonMobil has three plants – one in France and two in the U.S. – with combined capacity of 301,000 t/y. Ineos is the largest supplier with two U.S. plants and a third in Belgium with combined capacity of 355,000 t/y. Ineos is in the process of expanding one of its plants, in La Porte, Texas, U.S.
The PAO market has seen a number of capital investments in recent years. Besides the Beringen and La Porte projects, companies in China have opened five smaller plants with combined capacity of 73,000 t/y.
Low-viscosity PAOs are synthetic base fluids used in a range of lubricants, including automotive engine oils, industrial lubricants and greases. They are also increasingly incorporated into newer applications such as lubricants for electric vehicle drivetrains, fluids for wind turbine gearboxes and immersion cooling systems for data centers.