Celanese Explores Plans for Methanol Production Unit at Bishop, Texas, Facility

Mon, March 31 2014

DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Celanese Corporation (NYSE: CE), a global technology and specialty materials company, today announced its intent to explore plans to construct a methanol production unit at the company’s Bishop, Texas, facility.

Celanese is preparing to apply for the necessary environmental construction permits for a methanol unit with an expected annual capacity of 1.3 million tons at the company’s Bishop facility. Construction of this unit in Bishop would be subject to receipt of economic incentives from government authorities. The methanol unit would utilize abundant, low-cost natural gas in the U.S. Gulf Coast region as a feedstock and would benefit from the existing infrastructure at the site.

The Bishop methanol unit would be similar in scope and scale to the methanol unit under construction at the company’s Clear Lake, Texas, integrated chemical plant.

“The strategic upstream production of methanol and the attractive economics of natural gas in the U.S. Gulf Coast region – combined with the infrastructure at our Bishop facility – make this a unique opportunity for Celanese,” said Mark Rohr, chairman and chief executive officer.

Celanese would also consider a joint venture structure for the Bishop methanol unit in a similar fashion to the joint venture methanol unit currently being constructed at the Clear Lake plant.

The company’s Bishop facility, located between the communities of Kingsville and Bishop, Texas, is a world class manufacturing site for specialty chemicals, engineered materials and pharmaceutical products. The plant, which operates continuously, has been recognized as a global leader in environmental, health and safety performance by numerous industry, state and federal organizations. Products manufactured at the Bishop facility include Celcon® acetal copolymer, formaldehyde and GUR® ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene.

About Celanese

Celanese Corporation is a global technology leader in the production of differentiated chemistry solutions and specialty materials used in most major industries and consumer applications. With sales almost equally divided between North America, Europe and Asia, the company uses the full breadth of its global chemistry, technology and business expertise to create value for customers and the corporation. Celanese partners with customers to solve their most critical needs while making a positive impact on its communities and the world. Based in Dallas, Texas, Celanese employs approximately 7,400 employees worldwide and had 2013 net sales of $6.5 billion. For more information about Celanese Corporation and its product offerings, visit www.celanese.com or our blog at www.celaneseblog.com.

All registered trademarks are owned by Celanese International Corporation or its affiliates.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release may contain “forward-looking statements,” which include information concerning the company's plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future revenues or performance, capital expenditures, financing needs and other information that is not historical information. When used in this release, the words “outlook,” “forecast,” “estimates,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “projects,” “plans,” “intends,” “believes,” “may,” “can,” “could,” “might,” “will” and variations of such words or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are based upon current expectations and beliefs and various assumptions. There can be no assurance that the company will realize these expectations or that these beliefs will prove correct, including that the new facility will be constructed on the schedule or with the productivity desired by the company. There are a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the results expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements contained in this release. These risks and uncertainties include, among other things: changes in general economic, business, political and regulatory conditions; changes in the price and availability of raw materials; the ability to improve productivity by implementing technological improvements; the ability to obtain governmental approvals and to construct facilities on terms and schedules acceptable to the company; unavailability of required materials and equipment; unanticipated operational or commercial difficulties, including failure of facilities or processes to operate in accordance with specifications or expectations; the ability to achieve and maintain plant utilization; ability of third parties, including our commercial partners, suppliers or others, to comply with their commitments to us; the cost or availability of capital necessary to fund plant construction; compliance and other costs and potential disruption or interruption of production or operations due to accidents, cyber security incidents, terrorism or political unrest or other unforeseen events or delays in construction or operation of facilities, including the occurrence of acts of war or terrorist incidents or as a result of weather or natural disasters; potential liability for remedial actions and increased costs under existing or future environmental regulations, including those relating to climate change; potential liability resulting from pending or future litigation, or from changes in the laws, regulations or policies of governments or other governmental activities in the countries in which we operate; changes in interest rates; and various other factors discussed from time to time in the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made, and the company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which it is made or to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events or circumstances.

Celanese Corporation
Investor Relations
Jon Puckett, +1-972-443-4965
Jon.Puckett@celanese.com
or
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W. Travis Jacobsen, +1-972-443-3750
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Source: Celanese Corporation