Westlake Natrium Chlor-Alkali Plant
Large load · 15696 ENERGY ROAD, Proctor, WV
The Natrium plant near Proctor in Marshall County, West Virginia, on the Ohio River, is a chlor-alkali and derivatives complex that makes chlorine and caustic soda from salt brine, along with hydrogen, hydrochloric acid and calcium hypochlorite. Electrolysis plants of this kind run continuously on large amounts of electricity, and Natrium has its own on-site power plant, with a coal-fired history, permitted separately by the state. The site is held through Eagle Natrium LLC, a former PPG and Axiall asset that is now part of Westlake.
Overview
The U.S. Government bought the site in 1941 and began drilling the salt bed for the brine used to make chlorine and caustic soda. West Virginia DEP's 2017 engineering evaluation describes a plant that now also produces hydrogen, hydrochloric acid and calcium hypochlorite, and that has held air permits since 1974.
Profile
- On-site power plant
- The facility's power plant is covered by its own air permit, R14-0027D, which sets requirements for Boilers 3 through 6; Boilers 1 and 2 are permanently shut down. A 1980 permit converted Boiler 3 from stoker firing to pulverized coal, and a 2017 application sought a new 99.9 mmBtu/hr natural gas-fired boiler. The state record gives no power rating or grid interconnection figure for the plant.
- Ownership and operating record
- PPG's commodity chemicals division merged with Georgia Gulf in 2013 to form Axiall, and Eagle Natrium became an Axiall subsidiary; Westlake completed its acquisition of Axiall in 2016. A chlorine railcar leak in August 2016 evacuated the plant and nearby communities and shut it down. In June 2022 trade press reported the Natrium chlor-alkali unit was running at reduced rates after a turnaround as Westlake declared force majeure on chlorine and caustic soda across its U.S. system.
Facility
- Activity
- Chlorine, caustic soda, hydrogen, hydrochloric acid and calcium hypochlorite
- Industry
- Manufacturing
- Site type
- Facility
- Operating status
- Operating
Permits and agreements
- Agreement
- On-site power plant (Boilers 3 through 6) permitted separately under R14-0027D
Grid connections
- Utility
- Appalachian Power CoService territory
The site also falls inside the Wheeling Power Co service territory.
- Market
- PJMSite location
- Nearest substations
- Unnamed substation138 kV940 m
- Unnamed substation
Related records
Timeline
- Aug 31, 2016
- Westlake completes its acquisition of Axiall, parent of Eagle Natrium
Westlake Chemical Completes Acquisition of Axiall Corporation | Westlake Corporation
- Jun 23, 2022
- Westlake declares force majeure on chlorine and caustic soda; Natrium running at reduced rates
Chemical Week • June 20/27 • Westlake declares force majeure on US chlor-alkali