Plant Dismantlement & Relocation Solutions Case Studies

Phoenix Equipment acquired the former LaRoche Industries chloralkali complex in Gramercy, Louisiana and assumed responsibility for asbestos abatement, equipment recovery, dismantlement, and material recycling beside Kaiser Aluminum’s operating alumina refinery. The approximately $4.5 million project included chlorine, caustic soda, and refrigerant plants and required more than $1.5 million in asbestos abatement before dismantlement could proceed. Phoenix sold the refrigerant plant for relocation, preserved more than 75 pieces of process equipment for resale, and recycled approximately 1.5 million pounds of alloy scrap and 6,000 tons of steel. By recovering value from complete-plant resale, individual equipment, and recyclable metals, Phoenix was able to pay Kaiser for the assets while completing the abatement and dismantlement scope at no cost to the owner.

Phoenix Equipment acquired several idled facilities at Lonza’s Brandenburg, Kentucky site and managed their dismantlement, asset recovery, recycling, and site clearance before the property was transferred to a new owner. The approximately $5 million project included an ethylene plant, ethylene oxide plant, urethane plant, boiler house, compressor house, and more than 20 additional structures. Phoenix completed more than $1.5 million in asbestos abatement, preserved more than 100 pieces of process equipment for resale, and recycled more than 12,000 tons of carbon steel and over 1 million pounds of alloy metal. By combining plant acquisition, equipment recovery, demolition, scrap recycling, and concrete removal, Phoenix generated revenue for Lonza while clearing obsolete infrastructure from the site ahead of the property sale.

Phoenix Equipment purchased and dismantled Dyno Nobel’s surplus nitric acid plant and ammonium nitrate neutralizer while other portions of the facility remained operational. Phoenix carefully removed process equipment while preserving active utilities and infrastructure, recovering value through equipment resale, precious-metal recovery and recycling. The project allowed Dyno Nobel to eliminate obsolete assets without disrupting ongoing production.

Phoenix Equipment acquired and dismantled an idled 414 MMSCFD Toromont Refrigeration hydrocarbon dew point control plant at DTE Energy’s China Township, Michigan site, clearing the property for planned redevelopment while surrounding gas processing and power generation operations remained active. Phoenix managed the plant acquisition, dismantlement, equipment removal, logistics, and asset disposition under one project, carefully recovering reusable equipment from the two processing trains for resale. By identifying secondary-market opportunities for individual assets, Phoenix was able to factor their resale potential into the value of the complete facility while giving DTE a cleared site without having to separately manage dismantlement contractors or equipment sales.

Phoenix Equipment managed the complete sale and relocation of a 2,300 BPD recycled oil refinery from Florida to Indonesia. In less than nine months, Phoenix coordinated engineering, match-marking, dismantlement, heavy-haul transportation, export packing, port operations and ocean freight for more than 955,000 kg of equipment—saving the buyer millions of dollars and more than 30 months compared with a new-build alternative.

After Arxada discontinued a chlorination production line in a densely configured five-story building, Phoenix managed the complete turnkey dismantlement. Phoenix selectively removed and recovered high-value process equipment before executing the full structural demolition and recycling program. This single-source solution eliminated contractor coordination, captured secondary-market asset value, and completely cleared the site for redevelopment.

Phoenix Equipment acquired an entire cogeneration facility in Pawtucket, Rhode Island and assumed responsibility for equipment resale, dismantlement, transportation and site cleanup. Major assets, including the GE Frame 6B gas turbine, were redeployed to new users. The solution eliminated demolition and decommissioning costs for the owner while leaving a clean site ready for redevelopment.

When process changes left a lightly used 1.5 MMGPY ethanol recovery unit surplus at Coors’ Golden, Colorado brewery, Phoenix purchased the system and handled its removal and remarketing. Phoenix ultimately sold the unit to an expanding Irish whisky distillery and coordinated its international relocation—allowing Coors to recover value while giving the buyer capacity at less than half the cost of new equipment.

Phoenix Equipment managed the dismantlement and site clearance of the former Vertellus chemical facility in Bayonne, New Jersey, including more than 90 storage tanks, process buildings, piping and 150-foot boiler stacks. Phoenix also coordinated residual chemical removal, environmental requirements and permitting while recovering value through equipment resale and scrap recycling—helping position the property for redevelopment.

Phoenix Equipment dismantled and removed the chemical processing operations from Nalco’s facility so the property could be converted to warehouse use. Phoenix coordinated the removal of both indoor and outdoor process equipment, helping the owner safely and efficiently transition the property from chemical manufacturing to its next productive use.

Phoenix Equipment demolished the former Western Electric powerhouse and substation in Kearny, New Jersey under highly constrained site conditions where implosion was not possible. The project included two 200-foot brick chimneys, asbestos abatement and protection of adjacent active warehouses. Phoenix developed a controlled demolition approach while recovering 2,500 tons of steel, 50,000 pounds of copper and reusing 23,000 tons of masonry onsite.

Phoenix acquired Calpine’s retired 56 MW cogeneration plant in Newark, New Jersey and assumed responsibility for equipment recovery, demolition and site restoration at no cost to Calpine. Phoenix resold valuable turbine and plant equipment, safely dismantled the facility within a highly constrained site and ultimately returned the property as a paved lot—completing the project ahead of schedule.

Phoenix Equipment helped transform a former CNSL chemical manufacturing site in Newark, New Jersey into a redevelopment-ready property by combining environmental cleanup, equipment resale and selective demolition. Phoenix recovered dozens of reusable tanks and process equipment before demolition, recycled more than 1,350 tons of steel and reused approximately 10,000 tons of masonry onsite—helping offset the owner’s redevelopment costs.

Phoenix Equipment purchased a closed 600,000-gallon stainless steel tank farm and unloading station and assumed responsibility for complete removal of the facility. Phoenix resold reusable tanks and process equipment, recycled more than one million pounds of non-ferrous material and 1,000 tons of ferrous metal, and removed the remaining infrastructure—including a major concrete retaining structure—to return the property to greenfield condition.

Phoenix Equipment dismantled an obsolete polystyrene production unit within Nova Chemicals’ active Pennsylvania manufacturing complex while surrounding operations continued uninterrupted. Phoenix recovered more than 50 major pieces of process equipment for resale, coordinated environmental work and executed complex structural removals in confined areas. The eight-month project was completed on schedule, on budget and without a safety incident.

Phoenix Equipment purchased and dismantled Marathon Oil’s surplus lube oil processing units while the surrounding Catlettsburg refinery remained operational. Phoenix recovered and remarketed valuable MEK process equipment before demolition and managed the remaining scrap program, ultimately recovering approximately 5,000 tons of steel and 400,000 pounds of non-ferrous metals. Integrating asset recovery with dismantlement helped reduce Marathon’s overall project cost.