Westlake Chemical announced Thursday that it will expand the ethane cracker in its Sulphur plant to bolster its ethylene production.

The expansion, estimated to cost over $330 million, will increase Westlake’s annual ethylene capacity by about 250 million pounds, Chairman and CEO Albert Chao and Gov. Bobby Jindal said Thursday at a news conference.

The expansion will create 25 jobs with $81,000 base salaries and 164 indirect jobs, Jindal said. “These are good-paying jobs,” he said. “These are the kinds of jobs we want our kids and grandchildren to have in our state.”

In addition, the expansion will keep 480 existing jobs in the area and create 1,000 construction jobs over the next two years, Jindal said. The expansion is expected to be completed in late 2015 or early 2016.

“Let me again express our thanks to the state of Louisiana for your partnership with Westlake,” Chao said. “We recognize that cooperative partnerships are needed for mutual success, and we are grateful for the support and good working relationship that we have experienced with this community and the great state of Louisiana.”

Westlake Chemical is investing $2 billion in growth, almost half of that in Louisiana, Jindal said.

“You’ve got a company that has been here for a long time,” Jindal said. “You’ve got a company that is growing that is successful and is making large investments in our state, not just here in Sulphur, not just Southwest Louisiana, but in Southeast Louisiana as well.”

Jindal said the more than $50 billion in development and more than 83,000 jobs expected to come into Louisiana will help keep workers in the state.

“Our economists tell us this is the greatest expansion we have ever experienced,” he said.(American Press Archives)

Rick Hickman