Port of Corpus Christi to get export facility for propane and butane liquids

Fuel Fix:
A pair of spherical storage tanks located along the Corpus Christi Ship Channel may soon become an alternative hub for exports of propane, butane and other liquefied petroleum gases.

Houston marine terminal operator Moda Midstream is already exporting crude oil from its Ingleside facility, but the company is making multimillion dollar upgrades to use the twin storage tanks to ship propane and butane to customers around the world.

Known in the oil and gas industry as LPGs, propane and butane are byproducts of oil and natural gas extraction and the refining process. The two gases can be compressed into a liquid form at relatively warm temperatures and low pressures, making them easy to store and transport. They are typically stored outdoors in giant spherical or pill-shaped tanks.

Related: Moda Midstream kicks off second round of expansion at Ingleside terminal

Along with the bounty of oil and natural gas, the shale revolution has produced record volumes of liquefied petroleum gases, which include propane and butane, as well as ethane, a feedstock for petrochemicals and plastics.

Moda Midstream is aiming to turn its Ingleside complex into an alternative to Mont Belvieu, the national hub for LPGs located about 30 miles east of Houston. Prices for propane and butane are set based what’s called the Mont Belvieu index.

Propane is currently trading at around 68 cents per gallon and butane is trading just below 83 cents per gallon but prices for both are higher overseas. The two gases are replacing wood, coal and animal dung as sources for cooking and heating in the developing world while petrochemical plants in Asia and Europe are them using as feedstocks.

The United States exported more than 1.2 million barrels of LPGs per day in 2017, according to the U.S. Energy Department. A majority of the nation’s LPG exports come from Mont Belvieu, but Moda is hoping to make inroads into those numbers.
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Propane is used for heating and cooking in rural areas.  It can also be stored in tanks near homes and you also see it used in small tanks for grilling.   It is a byproduct of the drilling process and can be sent to market through pipelines.  It can also be used for motor fuel to run auto engines or generators.

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