A Nova Chemicals executive says Sarnia-Lambton is the primary focus for a potential new world-class polyethylene facility.
Regional Manufacturing Director Tom Thompson says right now they're calling the Sarnia-Lambton location their base case but they're always evaluating other alternatives as well.
Initially, the U.S. Gulf Coast was also said to be in the running.
"We're on a phased journey to continue to develop our assets in the region," he says.
"Really it started back in 2011 when we undertook a $250-million conversion of our Corunna cracker that allowed us to crack ethane sourced from the Marcellus Shale Basin. Right now we're in the process of doing further upgrades, at the Corunna facility, to allow us to crack 100% ethane and bring in an alternate source from the Utica Shale Basin in Ohio."
He says engineering and study work continues for the proposed polyethlene plant, coupled with the "de-bottlenecking' work to increase production at its Corunna site.
Thompson says the new plant would be an investment in the range of $1-billion to $2-billion dollars.
"It will be a very good thing for Sarnia-Lambton if this were to move forward ," he says.
"As far as numbers, for both construction jobs and permanent jobs, that's part of the ongoing work that we are undertaking at this point in time."
"We've got an aggressive growth strategy and we are reinvesting in our existing facilities. It's a very exciting time for Nova Chemicals, our employees and obviously the community in which we operate," says Thompson.
A final investment decision is expected next summer with start-up targeted for the year 2022 subject to regulatory approvals.
