[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 35 (Wednesday, February 21, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6622-6623]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-3753]



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[[Page 6623]]


DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Foreign-Trade Zones Board
[Docket 9-96]


Foreign-Trade Zone 154--Baton Rouge, Louisiana Application for 
Subzone Status, Exxon Corporation (Oil Refinery/Petrochemical Complex), 
Baton Rouge, Louisiana Area

    An application has been submitted to the Foreign-Trade Zones Board 
(the Board) by the Greater Baton Rouge Port Commission, grantee of FTZ 
154, requesting special-purpose subzone status for the oil refinery 
complex of Exxon Corporation, located in the Baton Rouge, Louisiana 
area. The application was submitted pursuant to the provisions of the 
Foreign-Trade Zones Act, as amended (19 U.S.C. 81a-81u), and the 
regulations of the Board (15 CFR part 400). It was formally filed on 
February 7, 1996.
    The refinery and petrochemical complex (2,280 acres) covers six 
sites in the Baton Rouge, Louisiana area: Site 1 (980 acres, 424,000 
BPD capacity)--main refinery complex, located at 4045 Scenic Hwy. on 
the Mississippi River, East Baton Rouge Parish; Site 2 (140 acres, 
11,000 tons/day capacity)--petrochemical plant, located adjacent to the 
refinery at 4999 Scenic Hwy., East Baton Rouge Parish; Site 3 (580 
acres, 1.5 million barrel capacity)--Maryland Tank Farm storage 
facility/plastics plant, located at 11675 Scotland-Zachary Hwy., East 
Baton Rouge Parish; Site 4 (60 acres, 5,000 BPD capacity)--lubricants 
plant, located at 2230 Highway 1 North, across the Mississippi River 
from the main refinery, West Baton Rouge Parish; Site 5 (460 acres, 2.9 
million barrel capacity)--Anchorage Tank Farm, located adjacent to the 
lubricants plant, West Baton Rouge Parish; and, Site 6 (100 acres, 6.5 
million barrel capacity)--Sorrento Salt Dome, located on Louisiana Hwy. 
3140, some 2 miles east of U.S. Hwy. 61, Ascension Parish. Exxon 
operates the six sites as an integrated refinery/petrochemical complex.
    The refinery and petrochemical complex (4,000 employees) is used to 
produce fuels, petrochemical feedstocks and petrochemical products. 
Fuels produced include gasoline, jet fuel, distillates, gas oils, 
residual fuels, and naphthas. Petrochemical feedstocks include 
ethylene, propylene, isobutylene, butadiene, and benzene. Refinery by-
products include sulfur, carbon black oil, petroleum waxes, and 
petroleum coke. The complex also produces petrochemcial products such 
as lubricating oils, process oils, petroleum resins, benzene phthalic 
anhydride, methyl ethyl ketone, alkyl esters, alcohols, neo acids, 
isoprene, naphthenic acid, Vistalon Rubber, Exxon 
Bromobutyl, Escorez Cyclics, Jayflex Plasticizer, 
Exxate Solvents. Some 40 percent of the crude oil (85 percent 
of inputs), and some feedstocks and motor fuel blendstocks used in 
producing fuel products are sourced abroad.
    Zone procedures would exempt the refinery from Customs duty 
payments on the foreign products used in its exports. On domestic 
sales, the company would be able to choose the finished product duty 
rate (nonprivileged foreign status--NPF) on certain petrochemical 
feedstocks and refinery by-products (duty-free). The duty on crude oil 
ranges from 5.25 cents to 10.5 cents/barrel. (The remaining finished 
products--fuel and petrochemical products--generally have the same or 
higher duty rates than crude oil, and for those products zone 
procedures would be primarily used to defer Customs duty payments.) The 
application indicates that the savings from zone procedures would help 
improve the refinery's international competitiveness.
    In accordance with the Board's regulations, a member of the FTZ 
Staff has been designated examiner to investigate the application and 
report to the Board.
    Public comment is invited from interested parties. Submissions 
(original and 3 copies) shall be addressed to the Board's Executive 
Secretary at the address below. The closing period for their receipt is 
[60 days from date of publication]. Rebuttal comments in response to 
material submitted during the foregoing period may be submitted during 
the subsequent 15-day period (to [75 days from date of publication]).
    A copy of the application and accompanying exhibits will be 
available for public inspection at each of the following locations:

U.S. Department of Commerce District Office, One Canal Place, 365 Canal 
Street, Suite 2150, New Orleans, Louisiana 70130
Office of the Executive Secretary, Foreign-Trade Zones Board, Room 
3716, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th & Pennsylvania Avenue NW., 
Washington, DC 20230.

    Dated: February 7, 1996.
John J. Da Ponte, Jr.,
Executive Secretary.
[FR Doc. 96-3753 Filed 2-20-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P