Mar. 4—Oil and gas giant Shell is considering a potential sale of its chemicals assets in both Europe and the U.S.—including its Deer Park facility in Houston, according to a new report.
The oil and natural gas company is working with bankers on a review of all of its chemical operations, according to the Wall Street Journal, which said the process is in its early stages and Shell has not yet made a decision.
The news of a potential sale comes after a September report said Shell may soon announce it is cutting 20 percent of its upstream workforce,
Shell has owned the chemical plant on the Houston Ship Channel since the 1940s, where it produces a range of chemicals such as light and heavy olefins, which can be used to make pharmaceuticals, detergents, adhesives and wire coating. The state of Texas sued Shell in 2023 following a three-day fire at its Deer Park chemicals facility, claiming the blaze led to environmental damage from contaminants and waste making its way into nearby waterways. The plant is right next to a former Shell refinery, which the company sold to Pemex in 2022.
Shell also has U.S. chemical plants in Pennsylvania and Louisiana.
The WSJ said potential bidders for the Houston chemical facility could include private equity firms or Middle Eastern buyers looking to expand into the U.S.
According to the WSJ, Shell's chemicals business has not been strong lately, resulting in losses in recent years that have affected the company's performance overall. Last year, Shell sold its refining and chemicals hub in Singapore.
Shell chief executive Wael Sawan has been focused on cutting costs and pivoting the company to its most profitable areas —oil, gas and biofuels—while getting away from renewables. The oil giant said last year that it would move away from its wind investments.
Deer Park, Texs has been the site of recent deadly accidents, with a chemical release that caused two deaths at the Pemex refinery in October and a pipeline explosion in September spurre by a driver suffering a medical event. The collision, and then explosion, ruptured the pipeline, ignited the natural gas liquids it was transporting and spewed a tower of flames that burned for more than three days. The intense heat burned and melted power lines and parts of nearby homes and cars. Hundreds of homes and businesses in Deer Park and La Porte were evacuated or lost power.
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