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Mark Lashier, president and CEO of Phillips 66, poses for a portrait Tuesday March 14, 2023, at the company\u2019s office in Houston.<\/p>\n
Jon Shapley\/Staff photographer<\/p>\n
A ship is docked as the sun sets Thursday, Nov. 16, 2023, at the Port of Corpus Christi in Corpus Christi.<\/p>\n
Jon Shapley\/Staff photographer<\/p>\n
Houston oil giant Phillips 66 is building a new gas plant and pipeline in the Permian Basin and expanding its Corpus Christi processing and pipeline facilities as the company expands its natural gas liquids business<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Energy companies have been growing their chemicals business as part of the energy transition<\/a> and a push to cushion their portfolios from volatile consumer and market trends. Although policy changes of the Trump administration have\u00a0incentivized a focus on traditional resources<\/a> such as oil and coal, forecasts still suggest demand for crude is expected to decline within the next two decades.<\/p>\n Demand for chemicals such as ethane, propane and butane is expected to rise with their increased use in cleaner-burning fuels and as building blocks of plastics. These chemicals are used to produce compounds used in everything from plastic for packaging materials to polymers for construction and consumer electronics.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n GAS BOOM: Houston-based Caturus greenlights $13 billion Commonwealth LNG project in Louisiana<\/a><\/p>\n Phillips 66 in particular has taken steps to boost its sales of natural gas liquids such as ethane, propane and butane. The company spent more than $6 billion in recent years to acquire pipelines and processing facilities from Epic NGL in 2025<\/a> and DCP Midstream in 2023.<\/p>\n The new Zeus gas plant will include the construction of the Midland Express Pipeline, an approximately 45-mile, 20-inch line connecting the company\u2019s Permian Basin production assets.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Zeus plant will be able to process 300 million cubic feet per day of natural gas. The pipeline is expected to be able to move up to 230 million cubic feet of gas with bidirectional flows between multiple processing facilities.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n \u201cAt a high level, Zeus is the next step in our plan to add a gas plant every 12-18 months,\u201d said Don Baldridge, executive vice president of midstream for Phillips 66, in an email.<\/p>\n Gas plants the company already has in its Permian lineup include Dos Picos II and Iron Mesa, which together will be responsible for processing more than 520 million standard cubic feet per day. Dos Picos II is already online while Iron Mesa is expected to come online next year.<\/p>\n TAXPAYER ENERGY: Controversial $10 billion Texas Energy Fund produces its first natural gas power plant<\/a><\/p>\n Phillips 66 also said Monday that it will build\u00a0 a third fractionator at its Coastal Bend facility in Robstown, near Corpus Christi. Fractionators are facilities used to separate mixed natural gas liquids into separate components that can then be properly distilled into different products.\u00a0<\/p>\n The new Permian gas plant and the new fractionation facility grow the company\u2019s capacity to move natural gas and its chemical byproducts into demand centers, Baldridge said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n The Coastal Bend development adds 100,000 barrels per day of natural gas liquids processing to Phillips 66\u2019s Corpus Christi operations. It will also include an NGL pipeline expansion and water treatment facilities, the company said.<\/p>\n CHRONICLE EXCLUSIVE: Texas officials rejected Corpus Christi water project amid looming crisis<\/a><\/p>\n