Long Beach port seeks petrochemical FTZ expansion

Long Beach port seeks petrochemical FTZ expansion    The Port of Long Beach has applied to federal regulators for permission to expand its petrochemical foreign trade zone, according to a Federal Register filing Tuesday.
   Port officials are asking a branch of the Department of Commerce to allow expansion of a subzone of the port's Foreign Trade Zone 50, now composed of the 137-acre Valero Energy Corp. petrochemical refinery and two storage farms. A new 6.4-acre site would be located about 1.6 miles from the refinery at the Wilmington Asphalt Plant and would increase the overall crude distillation capacity of the refinery to 126,000 barrels per day.
   Inclusion of the site in the FTZ would exempt production at the facility from customs duty payments on the foreign products used in its exports. On domestic sales, the plant would be able to 'choose the customs duty rates for certain petrochemical feedstocks by admitting foreign crude oil in non-privileged foreign status,' the Federal Register notice said.
   A FTZ is government-designated site where special customs procedures may be used. Goods shipped into a FTZ are treated as duty-free until they are shipped out into the United States. Goods imported into the FTZ can also be re-exported by companies without paying customs duties.
   The Foreign-Trade Zones Board, which oversees the nation's FTZs, is investigating the Long Beach application and public comment is invited from interested parties. For further information, contact Elizabeth Whiteman at Elizabeth_Whiteman@ita.doc.gov or (202) 482-0473.