How Do We Balance the Reality of Global Competition with the Need to Keep Local Petrochemical Industry Jobs?
Overview: As one of the top exporting states in the nation, Louisiana is increasingly bound in economic fortunes to the international economy. Louisiana’s petrochemical industry is currently experiencing downsizing due to energy costs that are not competitive with global prices. Our petrochemical plants have been outfitted to use natural gas exclusively as an energy source, due to its clean- burning attributes. Additionally, natural gas often serves as a feedstock, the raw material for the products made at chemical plants. Unlike oil, a globally traded commodity, natural gas is priced locally and its distribution is usually local. Current U.S. policy limits natural gas production at a time when demand is increasing due to a proliferation of new power plants that use it for fuel. With needs pushing the available resources, prices have risen dramatically. Since 2002, natural gas prices have more than doubled, from a $3 average to as high as $6.25 per thousand cubic feet. Chemical plants
