He further said, “We expect to increase our supply flexibility even more with the announcement of another major agreement in the coming weeks.”

Following several months of ongoing discussions with Frontier Oil and Refining Company (“Frontier”) and other manufacturers of phenol and acetone.

The agreement was signed recently in Houston by The Plaza Group’s President Randy Velarde and Resolution Performance Products’ Purchasing Manager Hans van Veen.

The expansion brings the plant’s nonene capacity to approximately 110 million pounds per year, an increase that follows the addition of 30 million pounds per year only two years ago.

With 368 chemical plants and an aggregate employment exceeding 37,600, the economic impact of the chemical industry on the Houston area is staggering.

The Plaza Group has signed an exclusive buy/sell agreement with Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A. for PDVSA’s nonene product, a chemical intermediate used in the production of plasticizers, detergents and coatings.

The Plaza Group has been chosen by Equilon Enterprises LLC to continue to serve as its exclusive marketer of nonene, a chemical intermediate used in the production of plasticizers, detergents and coatings.

Effective January 1, 2001, The Plaza Group has promoted three of its employees in recognition of performance excellence.

On January 9, 2001, The Plaza Group signed a long-term contract with Frontier Oil and Refining Company (“Frontier”), a subsidiary of Frontier Oil Corporation, to market phenol, acetone, toluene and alpha methyl styrene (AMS) produced at Frontier’s El Dorado, Kansas, facility.