Ineos to invest £1 billion in the UK, including VAM project at Hull

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Ineos announced today that it would invest £1 billion ($1.33 billion) in the United Kingdom, including £500 million in the Forties Pipeline System (FPS), prolonging the life of the North Sea's main oil and gas artery into the 2040s; £350 million in a new energy plant at Grangemouth, the company's main refinery and petrochemicals complex in the country; and £150 million at Hull to build a previously announced 300,000-metric tons/year vinyl acetate monomer (VAM) plant. The news comes weeks after Ineos announced a major investment in petrochemicals, including a new steam cracker, at Antwerp. The biggest investment announced today is in the FPS. The company intends to overhaul the reliability of the 500-kilometer pipeline system, including modernizing the environmental systems and implementing the latest technology. Opened in 1975, the FPS is a strategic UK asset that can transport up to 600,000 b/d of North Sea oil onshore for refining. The pipeline transports 40% of the United Kingdom's oil and gas to the mainland. The second project is another move to rejuvenate the Grangemouth site. The investment will allow for the development of a new steam and power plant, delivering significantly improved energy efficiency and long-term reliability. Fluor is the contractor on the energy plant, which will replace an existing facility. Selecting Hull for the £150-million VAM project will bring production of an important raw material back to the United Kingdom, the company says. Ineos first announced the project in September 2017. The company does not have captive use for VAM, and all the new plant's output is expected to be sold on the merchant market.