Nacero selects Ector County for $7 billion facility to manufacture gasoline

Houston-based Nacero said last week it will build in two phases a $6.5-to-$7.0 billion lower-carbon gasoline manufacturing facility near Penwell in Ector County. Odessa American said the 2,600-acre site about 15 miles west of Odessa was one of three finalists for the plant’s location. It will be the first in the U.S. to produce gasoline from natural gas as well as the first in the world to incorporate carbon capture and sequestration. Phase I will produce 70,000 barrels per day of gasoline component (ready for blending to U.S. commercial grades), and Phase II will increase capacity to 100,000 b/d. Nacero said the gasoline produced will contain no sulfur with half the lifecycle carbon footprint of traditional gasoline. The gasoline will be made from a combination of natural gas, captured bio-methane from farms and landfills, and mitigated flared gas from the Permian Basin.
In its announcement April 22, Nacero said Odessa Development Corp. and the economic development department of Odessa Chamber of Commerce led the negotiations that resulted in Penwell’s selection. Phase I construction is expected to require four years. When fully operating, the plant will employ 350 full-time personnel in three shifts, and all electricity will come from renewable sources. Construction is scheduled to begin by yearend.
State representative Brooks Landgraf (R-Odessa) said, “This world-class, innovative company will use 100 percent American resources to make 100 percent American affordable gasoline for everyday American drivers.” Odessa American said the plant will not require a permit from U.S. Department of Energy, but it will require approval of Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.