Methanol plant site not fixed

Press, 9 May 1980, Page 2

Methanol plant site not fixed

PA New Plymouth Petrocorp awaits further information from its Canadian partner, Alberta Gas and Chemicals, Ltd, before making a final decision on where to site its $l3O million stand-alone methanol plant. When Alberta Gas and Petrocorp officials visited Taranaki on April 21, the president of Alberta Gas (Mr John Loporto) said four specific sites the 310 ha of Tikorangi land bought by Petrocorp had been identified as suitable for the plant. He expected then that a decision on exactly where to build the plant, which requires about 16ha, would be made in two or three weeks.

Petrocorp’s general manager (Mr R. J. Hogg) said in Wellington yesterday that at this stage the choice among

the four possible sites was still wide open. “Alberta Gas is doing some more work relating to the design of the plant and we are waiting for further information before we can settle on a site,” Mr Hogg said. Discussions on the route to pipe methanol from the plant to Port Taranaki had been held, but it was still some weeks before surveying would begin. Mr Hogg said there were several matters to be. finalised and identification of the actual site was only one of them.