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ERCO Worldwide Announces US$95 Million Expansion of Port Edwards Chloralkali Facility
ERCO Worldwide Announces US$95 Million Expansion of Port Edwards Chloralkali Facility.
About this update from Superior Plus Corp
[{"type":"text","content":"\n\n\n\nTSX:SPF.UN\n\n\nCALGARY, Aug. 8 /CNW/ - Superior Plus Income Fund (the "Fund") is pleased\nto announce that ERCO Worldwide, a division of the Fund, will be converting\nits Port Edwards chloralkali facility from mercury based technology to\nmembrane technology. The current mercury based plant would be projected to\nclose within the next 5 to 7 years and this conversion will extend the\nfacility life for an additional 25 to 30 years. The investment in the facility\nconversion is estimated to be USD $95 million (including capitalized interest\nand working capital of $8 million). Start-up of the new state-of-the-art\ntechnology is projected for the last half of 2009, pending the completion of\nthe permitting process.\n\n\nThe Port Edwards facility is the third largest producer of potassium\nchloralkali products in North America and has a strong competitive position\nwith a track record of stable cash flow which will be further enhanced with\ncompletion of the project. The project will commence immediately and can be\naccommodated with minimal disruption to current operations. The project is\nexpected to be accretive to unitholders generating an estimated\nUSD $17.5 million in increased operating cash flow in its first full year of\noperation utilizing current chlorine and caustic prices. Long term sustainable\nearnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization is forecasted\nto average USD $26 million over the life of the facility. The project is\nexpected to provide the Fund with an after tax rate of return greater than\n15%.\n\n\nIn commenting on the investment, Grant Billing, Chairman and Chief\nExecutive Officer, stated, "We are extremely pleased to announce this\nattractive investment which will further diversify our North American\nspecialty chemical business and provide incremental growth in distributable\ncash flow for our Unitholders. Our strong balance sheet combined with the\nproceeds from our DRIP equity program and our new $535 million syndicated debt\nfacility allows the Fund to capitalize on attractive investment growth\nopportunities from all of our business units in the future."\n\n\nPaul Timmons, President of ERCO Worldwide, stated, "Membrane is a proven\ntechnology and provides significant environmental benefits over the existing\nmercury based technology. This conversi...