Exxon announces $2B expansion of Baytown plant in Texas

Exxon Mobil says it plans to spend $2 billion to expand a chemicals plant next to the Houston Ship Channel and that the project will create 2,000 temporary construction jobs.

The company said Thursday it will build a new unit at the Baytown plant to make chemical compounds that give plastics more elasticity and flexibility, and produce ingredients used in engine and industrial oils.

Exxon says the facility should begin operating in 2022.

CEO Darren Woods says the expansion will help Exxon take advantage of its oil and natural gas production in the Permian Basin of Texas and New Mexico.

The company believes global demand for chemicals will grow faster than demand for energy over the next 20 years.

Exxon announced other changes at the Baytown site in 2017.