Praxair Expands Tennessee Air Separation Plant
03/15/2011 - Praxair announced plans to double the capacity of its Memphis, Tenn., air separation complex to produce oxygen and nitrogen that will supply Nucor and Valero Energy.
Praxair, Inc. announced plans to double the capacity of its Memphis, Tenn., air separation complex to produce oxygen and nitrogen in order to supply Nucor Corp. and Valero Energy Corp.
The capacity expansion features a recently completed pipeline capable of serving multiple customers in the Riverport area. A new plant is expected to start up in the third quarter of this year.
As part of this planned expansion, Praxair will add 400 tons per day of new liquid production capacity to serve the growing requirements of customers in this region.
“Praxair’s large air separation units continue to deliver quality, reliability and operational efficiencies to meet customer requirements now and for the future,” said Kevin Foti, Praxair’s Vice President of the East Region, North American Industrial Gases. “We look forward to enhancing our relationship with both Nucor and Valero and to the overall steady growth that we see in the Southeast region.”
Headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., Nucor and affiliates manufacture steel products, with operating facilities primarily in the U.S. and Canada. Products produced include carbon and alloy steel bars, beams, sheet and plate; steel fasteners, metal building systems; light gauge steel framing; steel grating and expanded metal; and wire and wire mesh. Nucor, through The David J. Joseph Company, one of the leading scrap companies in the U.S., also brokers ferrous and nonferrous metals, pig iron and HBI/DRI; supplies ferro-alloys; and processes ferrous and nonferrous scrap. Nucor is North America’s largest metals recycler.
Valero Energy Corp. is an international manufacturer and marketer of transportation fuels, other petrochemical products and power. Its assets include 14 petroleum refineries with a combined throughput capacity of approximately 2.6 million barrels per day, 10 ethanol plants with a combined production capacity of 1.1 billion gallons per year, and a 50-megawatt wind farm. Valero is also one of the largest retail operators with approximately 5,800 retail and branded wholesale outlets in the United States, Canada and the Caribbean under the Valero, Diamond Shamrock, Shamrock, Ultramar and Beacon brands. Based in San Antonio, Valero is a Fortune 500 company with approximately 20,000 employees.
Praxair, Inc. is one of the largest industrial gases companies in North and South America, and one of the largest worldwide, with 2010 sales of $10 billion. The company produces, sells and distributes atmospheric, process and specialty gases and high-performance surface coatings. Praxair products, services and technology bring productivity and environmental benefits to a wide variety of industries, including aerospace, chemicals, electronics, energy, food and beverage, healthcare, manufacturing, metals and others.
