Rio Polímeros to start ops Jun 23

Brazilian petrochemicals plant Rio Polímeros will start operations on June 23, adding 540,000 tonnes a year of polyethylene capacity to supply the national market, the government of Rio de Janeiro state, where the plant is located, said in a statement. Rio Polímeros is controlled by a joint venture between Brazilian petrochemicals groups Suzano and Unipar, each with 33.3%, and federal energy company Petrobras (NYSE: PBR) and national development bank BNDES, each with a 16.7% stake. The group invested US$1.08bn in the project, which will use ethane and propane from natural gas as raw material. The state government is celebrating the start of operations of Rio Polímeros because the new plant will lead to the construction of eight new third generation plastics producers in the surrounding region, the statement said. The plastic makers obtained tax breaks from the state government and will use polypropylene from Rio Polímeros.