PTTGC America (PTTGCA) today announced the execution of a precedent agreement with Energy Storage Ventures LLC through its wholly owned subsidiary Mountaineer NGL Storage that will provide certain necessary infrastructure for a proposed petrochemical complex in the Ohio Valley. The precedent agreement outlines the terms and conditions for the development of a natural gas liquids (NGL) storage facility that will provide storage and transportation services for the proposed PTTGCA complex. The facility will be the first underground NGL storage site in the heart of the Marcellus and Utica shale formation.

Mountaineer will develop the underground salt caverns for NGL storage on a 200-acre site in Ohio’s Monroe County. The site, owned and operated by Mountaineer, is located approximately 8 miles south of the PTTGCA project site in Dilles Bottom. PTTGCA is working with Mountaineer on 1 million barrels of ethane storage and a pipeline that will link the storage facility to the project.

“Ethane storage and transportation will be a crucial element of a world-scale petrochemical complex,” said PTTGCA President and CEO Toasaporn Boonyapipat. “Mountaineer NGL Storage will provide essential infrastructure and capabilities to our project. Our impending partnership with this first-rate organization brings us one step closer to a final investment decision. We deeply appreciate all the support we have received from our federal, state and local partners, including Belmont and Monroe counties, which have brought us to this point.”

“We are pleased to partner with PTTGCA as it works toward the development of the second petrochemical plant to be located in the Ohio River Valley,” said David Hooker, President of Mountaineer NGL Storage. “Our storage facility will have an important role in managing the plant’s supply portfolio, along with offering PTTGCA and other prospective customers an option to manage seasonal and operational demand with competitive locally priced production. The PTTGCA team has been great to work with, and we look forward to a long and successful relationship.”

The $250 million storage facility will be developed in two phases by creating multiple caverns in the existing underground salt formation. Each cavern will be capable of storing approximately 500,000 barrels of NGLs, including propane, butane, ethane and ethylene. Mountaineer has obtained all required permits to begin construction of Phase 1 of the project – approximately 1.5 million barrels – which will take two to three years to complete. An additional 1.5 million barrels is planned for Phase 2, which will bring the total capacity to approximately 3 million barrels. Additional expansion capabilities are available, subject to market demand. With the support of the State of Ohio and the local community in Monroe County, the Mountaineer project will set new standards for safely building and operating am NGL storage facility.