Tetra Technologies Inc. of The Woodlands, Texas, said Tuesday that it intends to commercially develop its brine resources around Magnolia in a $100 million project it says will employ more than 100 people.
The company said the project will include brine production wells, a bromine plant, a calcium chloride plant and the expansion of Tetra’s existing West Memphis bromide facility.
Tetra also said it is seeking state incentives for the project.
“This investment will support our worldwide oil and gas completion fluids business,” Geoffrey M. Hertel, president and CEO, said in a news release. “It will also stabilize our costs for these products and will help us to supply our customers in what has become a very tight supply market.”
The company has set aside $20 million for 2006 capital expenditures for the expansion. Hertel said construction will take place in two phases, with the first phase operational by late 2007. The second phase is scheduled to be completed in 2009.
Tetra said the expansion at West Memphis will allow it to take bromine from Magnolia and use it to manufacture brominated clear brine fluids for its oil and gas services business. Tetra began acquiring brine leases near Magnolia more than a decade ago.
“It took time to put together these leases, as the Magnolia area is where the two domestic producers of bromine operate their facilities,” Hertel said. “In total, Tetra has amassed approximately 33,000 gross acres of brine leases. This should be enough reserves to sustain a world scale bromine/calcium chloride manufacturing facility for 25 to 30 years.”
Tetra is a publicly traded oil and gas services company.
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