NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa., Nov. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- ARCO Chemical (NYSE: RCM)
announced today that its subsidiary, ARCO Chemie Nederland, Ltd. (ACNL), has
awarded the contract for engineering, procurement, and construction of PO-11,
ACNL's new worldclass propylene oxide/styrene monomer plant to be built on the
Maasvlakte industrial site in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.  The contract has
been awarded to The PO-11 Construction Partnership, a newly formed joint
venture between JGC Corporation and ABB Lummus Global.
    Construction of the greenfield, state-of-the-art PO/SM plant, the world's
largest, will begin in the second quarter of 1998.  Mechanical completion is
targeted for the third quarter of 2000.
    The new plant will have an annual capacity of 625 million lbs. (285KT) of
PO and 1.4 billion lbs. (635KT) of styrene monomer.  When completed, it will
boost ARCO Chemical's global PO capacity to 4.4 billion lbs. (2,000 KT) per
year.  ARCO Chemical is the world's leading producer of PO and the No. 1
merchant producer of styrene.
    "Today's announcement follows extensive engineering efforts and is
consistent with the strategy and  schedule presented to ARCO Chemical's board
of directors, which approved the PO-11 project last year," said Alan Kornfeld,
Vice President, Basic Chemicals.  "This new plant is central to ARCO
Chemical's long-term strategy to grow our global PO business," he emphasized.
"The additional capacity from this plant ensures secure future supplies of PO
to our customers around the world and supports the continued market growth in
PO derivatives.  The plant will also provide us with a European source of
styrene monomer to supply customers and markets in both Europe and the Far
East," Kornfeld added.
    ARCO Chemical currently sells PO worldwide from five production sites,
including two in Europe:  at Botlek, in Rotterdam, and at Fos-sur-Mer, in
southern France.  Both existing European plants use a PO manufacturing
technology that produces MTBE as a co-product.  The new plant at Maasvlakte
will be ARCO Chemical's only PO plant in Europe to produce styrene monomer as
a co-product.
    The contract awarded to The PO-11 Construction Partnership includes
engineering, procurement, construction, and construction management for the
plant, an administrative and maintenance complex, and facilities for product
handling.
    JGC Corporation and ABB Lummus Global formed their joint venture in August
of this year for the purpose of bidding on the PO-11 project.  Engineering for
the PO/SM processing section of the plant will be accomplished by M.W.
Kellogg, Limited, London, a JGC affiliate company.  The Dutch subsidiary of
ABB Lummus Global will be responsible for the design of a Lummus technology-
based ethyl benzene unit, and for engineering the outside battery limit
support facilities for the plant.
    At its peak, the PO/SM project is expected to create up to 1,300 on-site
construction jobs.  Once completed, the plant will employ approximately 200
people.  The plant will be commissioned, started up and operated under the
direction of ARCO Chemical's existing manufacturing management in the Benelux.
"In this way the new facility can draw on the skills, expertise, and
experience of those involved in operating our existing plant in Rotterdam,"
said Jos Benders, Director of Manufacturing - Benelux.
    "ARCO Chemical has made full use of its significant experience in building
and operating 10 PO plants around the world, coupled with extensive front-end
engineering definition, to ensure that our new plant will provide the lowest-
cost PO capacity anywhere," said Charles Bonney, Project Director for PO-11.
    Last year, ACNL reached agreement on the supply of utilities and
industrial gases to the new plant.  A joint venture between Air Liquide, EZH,
and ENECO will build a cogeneration plant to supply steam and electricity to
the new facility.  In addition, Air Liquide will supply industrial gases,
ENECO will provide back-up electric power, and EZH will supply cooling water
and demineralized water.
    Raw materials sourcing for the new plant has been secured, with
commitments from major suppliers.  Benzene will be supplied by vessels, while
propylene will be fed to the plant via an existing ACNL terminal in Europoort.
A new common carrier ethylene pipeline to be built by a joint venture between
the Rotterdam Port Management and ARG will link the Maasvlakte industrial area
to the existing Northwest European ethylene grid and serve ACNL as the
launching customer.
    "We are grateful to the Port Authority of Rotterdam for its help in
coordinating the many activities needed to support this new plant and to the
provincial authority, the Ministry of Transport and Waterways, and local
administrative agencies for their counsel and assistance on our environmental
permits.  They have challenged us to move forward with the most
environmentally advanced facility that modern technology can provide," said
Benders.
    JGC Corporation, headquartered in Japan, is an international engineering
firm that serves diverse industry sectors including  petroleum refining,
chemical production, pipeline construction, and environmental protection.  ABB
Lummus Global is an international engineering and construction company that
provides technologies and services to the chemical, petrochemical, petroleum
refining, oil and gas, and power industries.  It is part of ABB's worldwide
oil, gas and petrochemical business, headquartered in Norway.
    ARCO Chemie Nederland, Ltd. is a wholly owned subsidiary of ARCO Chemical
Company, a leading worldwide manufacturer and marketer of PO and derivatives,
styrene monomer, MTBE, and other intermediate chemicals.  ARCO Chemical's
products are used in a wide range of consumer and industrial goods, including
automotive components, home furnishings, paints and coatings, plastics, engine
coolants, and reformulated gasoline.

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