Petrochemicals & Plastics
Schemes to produce plastics from fracked gas have largely failed in Appalachia.
Petrochemical development hasn’t generated economic prosperity in Beaver County, Pennsylvania, research shows, and market headwinds make new buildout unlikely. Learn more about the Ohio River Valley Institute’s research on the petrochemicals industry below.
Photo: Shell’s petrochemicals complex in Beaver County, Pennsylvania. Mark Dixon, 2022
“Years ago, the oil and gas industry predicted petrochemical development would sweep across Appalachia, creating tens of thousands of jobs.
Those plans largely fizzled.”
Reports:
All research on Petrochemicals & Plastics:
Measuring the ‘Cost’ of a Disaster
A lot has happened since ORVI originally published our post on the disastrous toxic train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. Cleanup efforts are still underway by the railroad operator, Norfolk Southern, but they have raised new questions about the safe transport of...
The East Palestine train derailment is petrochemical harm at its worst. For the industry, it’s a cost of doing business.
On Friday, February 3, a Norfolk Southern train carrying hazardous petrochemicals derailed near East Palestine, Ohio, sparking what may be one of the worst environmental disasters in US history. Thousands of fish have turned up dead in nearby waterways; a plume...
Updated Economics for Virgin Plastics
The global petrochemical industry is facing a severe “cycle low,” raising doubts about the viability of new development and the profitability of Shell’s new Pennsylvania ethane cracker.
Appalachia is Fueling a Global Petrochemical Buildout
Although the world is awash in plastics and other petrochemical products, the industry is planning for decades more growth. Much of the expansion could be driven by Appalachia.
Yet Another Reason Why The Plastics Industry Is in Trouble: Corporate Pledges
Sometime soon, Shell’s petrochemical plant in western Pennsylvania will finally begin operations, churning out millions of pounds of tiny resin pellets for plastic manufacturing. Despite a barrage of hype about a large-scale petrochemical buildout in Appalachia that...
Why Worry About the Future of the Plastics Industry? Public Opinion.
The plastics industry is facing a triple threat. Product bans, public opinion, and corporate pledges all conspire to curtail future profits and undercut expansion plans. This trio helps explain why the ballyhooed petrochemical buildout in Appalachia has never...
Why Worry About the Future of the Plastics Industry? Bans.
Last week, Ohio lieutenant governor John Husted spoke the unvarnished truth about the Ohio Valley’s long planned petrochemicals buildout. Responding to news about the perennially delayed project in Belmont County, he said, "The industry itself is not growing. So, it's...
A Cautionary Tale of Petrochemicals from Pennsylvania
Beaver County, Pennsylvania has fallen behind the state and the nation in nearly every measure of economic activity since the Shell petrochemicals complex was announced in 2012, data show.
Why the Fracked Gas to Plastics Pipeline Has No Future in the Ohio River Valley
Four years ago, petrochemical industry boosters predicted a new wave of industry would roll across the natural gas-producing region of Appalachia, spurring billions of dollars in capital investments and a veritable economic renaissance in a place that sorely needed...