Fire out at ExxonMobil’s US Baytown olefins plant; unit at reduced rates

HOUSTON (ICIS)–A fire that broke out at ExxonMobil’s olefins plant in Baytown, Texas on Wednesday has been extinguished, the company said on Thursday.

There were 37 workers injured in the fire, but ExxonMobil’s latest statement said all workers who received medical evaluation or first aid “have been cleared to return to work”.

“The rest of the Baytown complex, including the refinery, are operating at reduced rates,” the statement said.

“The impacted unit has been shut down and stabilised. An investigation is under way into the cause of the fire, which burned propane and propylene.”

A state filing with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) said the plant’s propylene recovery unit (PRU) was impacted by the fire.

The Baytown site has a capacity of 3.64m tonnes/year of ethylene and 960,000 tonnes/year of propylene, according to ICIS.

It was the second fire this year at the Baytown olefins plant, about 25 miles (40 km) east of Houston that began operations in 1979, according to ExxonMobil.

A previous fire in March stemmed from a leaky pipe and lasted only 30 minutes, with no injuries.

Harris County, which covers much of the City of Houston, filed suit against ExxonMobil in state court on Thursday, alleging that the oil producer violated the Texas Clean Air Act during the fire.

Additional reporting by Al Greenwood and Steven McGinn