Olin Chlor Alkali Products, Niagara Falls
Large load · 2400 BUFFALO AVE., Niagara Falls, NY
Olin's Niagara Falls, New York plant makes chlor-alkali products, including chlorine, caustic soda, hydrochloric acid and bleach. The plant's chlor-alkali capacity was cut in 2016, and in 2026 Olin said it would stop operating its chlor-alkali unit at the plant by the end of the year. The site has a long history with low-cost hydropower from the New York Power Authority, which in the early 1990s allocated power to the chlorine producers in the Niagara Falls area. The current grid story is a reduction in load as the chlor-alkali unit winds down.
Overview
Olin Corp. said it is ceasing operation of its chlor-alkali unit at its Niagara Falls plant by the end of the year. The Buffalo News reported that workers at the chlor-alkali plant had known since August that their jobs were in jeopardy. The closure takes one chlor-alkali unit out of service at the site, and the company's own listing still describes the Niagara Falls operation as a manufacturer of chlorine, caustic soda, hydrochloric acid and bleach.
Profile
- 2016 capacity reduction
- In March 2016 Olin announced that the capacity of its Niagara Falls, New York chlor alkali plant was reduced from 300,000 tons to 240,000 tons earlier that year, as part of restructuring charges of about $95 million in its first quarter 2016 results. The plant kept producing industrial bleach and hydrochloric acid in addition to chlor alkali. That reduction is the earlier step in the site's shrinking chlor-alkali footprint, ahead of the 2026 closure of the chlor-alkali unit.
- Power allocation history
- A 1992 Multinational Monitor report said two chlorine producers at Niagara Falls, the Niachlor plant owned jointly by Olin and Du Pont and Occidental, received close to 25 percent of the New York Power Authority's low-cost power. The same report said NYPA sold 695 megawatts of economic development power to about 90 companies at the time. The report also described an Olin transfer of part of its power grant to Niachlor in the late 1980s. These are historical allocations, not current contract terms.
Facility
- Activity
- Chlorine, caustic soda, hydrochloric acid and bleach (chlor-alkali)
- Industry
- Manufacturing
- Site type
- Facility
- Operating status
- Operating
Related records
Timeline
- Mar 21, 2016
- Olin announced the Niagara Falls chlor alkali plant capacity was reduced from 300,000 tons to 240,000 tons
Olin Announces Chlor Alkali Capacity Reductions