The developers of a proposed $3 billion gas-to-liquids (GTL) plant have named a site in Jefferson County, Arkansas, as the top location for the facility. Little Rock-based Energy Security Partners (ESP) — co-founded by retired four-star Army general Wesley Clark and former Exxon engineer Roger Williams — has completed preliminary engineering studies for the 33,000-barrel-per-day plant. The firm expects to file permits and begin pre-construction engineering and initial site development this year. The project was first announced last June.
It would be the first commercial-scale GTL plant in the U.S. if built. It remains to be seen if ESP can follow through on its plans, as previous large-scale U.S. GTL projects have either stalled or have been cancelled due to project costs and energy price volatility. Shell scrapped plans for a 140,000-barrels-per-day GTL plant on the Gulf Coast in 2013 and Sasol last year deferred a final investment decision on a $14 billion plant in Lake Charles, Louisiana.
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