Project Name Brazil-Ipiranga Petroquimica

Region South America

Sector Petrochemicals

Project No. 007268

1. Ipiranga Petroquímica S.A. (IPQ) is a producer of HDPE, with a domestic market share of about 35% and a Conesul market share of 25%. HDPE is a plastic resin used in a wide number of household and industrial applications. IPQ’s facilities consist of two HDPE plants with a nameplate capacity of 220,000 tpy. The Company is in the process of completing the construction of a third HDPE plant with an additional capacity of 135,000 tpy. The plant is expected to come on stream in early 1997. The project involves the expansion of IPQ’s polyethylene production facilities at Triunfo (in the state of Rio Grande do Sul) to install: (i) a high-density polyethylene (HDPE)/linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) swing plant with a capacity of 150,000 tpy, and (ii) install a polypropylene (PP) plant with a capacity of 150,000 tpy. IPQ is expanding its capacity in response to an increase in Brazilian and Conesul demand brought about by the strong GDP growth and low inflation following the implementation of the Real Plan in 1994, and the greater economic integration of the Conesul region.

2. This is a category B project according to IFC’s environmental review procedure because specific impacts may result which can be avoided or mitigated by adhering to generally recognized performance standards, guidelines or design criteria. The review of this project consisted of appraising technical and environmental information submitted by the project sponsor, and the technical appraisal and site review completed by IFC’s Chemicals, Petrochemicals and Fertilizers Department staff. The following potential environmental, health and safety impacts of the project were analyzed:

· site location and infrastructure;
· air emissions;
· effluent management;
· solid waste management;
· noise control;
· occupational health and safety;
· fire control and emergency response; and
· public information/consultation.

The sponsor has presented plans to address these issues and demonstrated that the proposed project will comply with applicable governmental and World Bank requirements. The information provided about how these potential impacts are addressed in the development of the project is summarized in the paragraphs that follow.

3. IPQ is located within the Southern Petrochemical Complex, in the State of Rio Grande do Sul. The complex is a dedicated industrial estate located on 3,600 hectares of land belonging to the cities of Triunfo and Montenegro. IPQ’s current site is 205,000 m2 and the expansion project will be located on 95,000 m2 of vacant land located next to this area and still within the complex area. The complex has its own river terminal, railway system connection, and access to a number of main roads. The complex has central utility systems including water supply and wastewater treatment and disposal.

4. The process will not create any air emissions under normal operation. For emergency cases and venting under process disturbances the facility will be equipped with a flare. All relief valves and venting systems will be connected to the flare.

5. IPQ’s effluent can be divided into three basic streams: organic effluent, inorganic effluent and non contaminated rain water. Organic effluent consist of industrial process water, washing water, sanitary sewage and potential contaminated rain water from roads and tank farms. Inorganic effluents consist purely of blow down water from cooling towers. The organic and the inorganic effluents are pre-treated on-site to remove oil and grease and to ensure consistent concentrations in the effluent before it is transferred to SITEL (the central wastewater treatment plant for the complex) for treatment. If abnormalities are experienced it is possible to retain the wastewater on-site until the problems have been solved, or the wastewater can be transferred to two large emergency basins at the SITEL facility. At SITEL the wastewater is treated biologically to obtain the following effluent characteristics: pH 6-8, BOD 8 mg O2/liter, oil and grease 8 mg/liter, and TSS 19 mg/liter. After the treatment the water is disposed of by land application on areas used solely for this purpose. The land application system has been chosen to ensure that SITEL’s water is continuously treated to the highest possible quality with no discharge to the local river systems. Clean rain water is transferred directly to SITEL’s rain water lagoons for control before discharge to the Cai River.

6. In common with IPQ’s existing plants, the new process facilities will be designed for minimal waste production and recycling were possible. The new process facilities will produce around 30 m3/month of solid waste. The solid waste will mainly be polymers separated from water streams and will be sold to licensed companies for reuse. Other types of solid waste will not increase significantly due to the new facilities and will be handled by SICECORS, a specialist company operating sanitary landfill, impermeable landfill, drum storage area, landfarming, and other special treatment and disposal systems for the entire petrochemical estate.

7. The processing facilities will be designed for noise control according to international standards (max. 85 dBA). Noise levels at the boundary will be kept below 70 dBA, according to industrial area standards.

8. Hazardous materials used in the process are handled only by trained workers and stored outside the process area. Eye-washers and showers are installed according to international standards for petrochemical industries. Air quality is monitored throughout the complex. Protective respiratory equipment is available in case of exposure to chemical agents, solvents, etc. Employees wear hearing protection, helmet, special footwear, safety glasses, and specific clothing when inside the process area. Pre-employment and periodic medical examinations are conducted for all employees. Extensive safety training, based on Hoechst AG programs and Brazilian law, is mandatory for all employee.

9. IPQ has its own fire fighting and emergency response system, and is further part of the PAM (Plan of Mutual Assistance), a group to ensure the best support from other industries in the complex in the event of a critical situation.

10. IPQ has carried out public information/consultation for the expansion project based on Brazilian regulation. The expansion project was announced in “Diario Oficial Industria y Comercio” and in “Zero Hora”, both in December 1995.

11. Based on its review of available information regarding potential environmental impacts IFC concludes that the proposed project is being designed to meet Government of Brazil requirements, and World Bank policies, and environmental, health and safety guidelines.

12. IFC will monitor Ipiranga Petroquimica’s ongoing compliance with World Bank policies and guidelines during the life of the project by evaluating the environmental performance reports submitted annually to IFC by the sponsor and by conducting periodic site reviews during project supervision.



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December 17, 1996 10:41 AM