Mold Remediation in Deer Park, TX

Shell’s Deer Park Facility, the subject of a state lawsuit and federal investigations for environmental harm caused by petrochemical fires at their plant, might be up for sale according to a report.

Shell is considering selling several chemical assets in the U.S and Europe, but the only asset named was the Deer Park Facility, Wall Street Journal reported this week. Private equity firms and Middle Eastern buyers were reported as potential bidders, the Journal reported. The other chemical assets are in Pennsylvania, Louisiana, the U.K., Germany and the Netherlands, the Journal reported.

Shell Energy Solutions, a Texas-based retail electricity provider, said last October they planned to layoff approximately 100 Houston-area employees by mid-December.

ENVIRONMENTAL VIOLATION: Shell Deer Park fire: Texas sues company over environmental violations

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality sued Shell for up to $1 million in Aug. 2023 over their handling of a 70-hour fire, reporting that Shell unlawfully discharged “mass quantities of air contaminants” and nearly 70 million gallons of wastewater into the Houston Ship Channel. Several workers also sued Shell for injuries suffered during the fire, which Shell said occurred during routine maintenance.

RESIDENT IMPACT: Shell fire hit after residents call out state on ITC permit

The Deer Park Facility that Shell is considering selling is adjacent to the PEMEX Oil and Gas Refinery, which Shell previously partly owned. The PEMEX refinery is the site where a hydrogen sulfide gas leak last October killed two, injured at least 35 and caused a shelter in place to be put into order.

Months before the PEMEX gas leak, Deer Park officials complained to the company about a lack of transparency and prompt notification about previous chemical leaks, according to records obtained by the Houston Chronicle.

The potential sale of Shell, the Wall Street Journal reported, is in the early stages, as company officials work with bankers to review all its chemical assets.

Correction (March 6, 2025, 9:30 a.m.): This story has been updated to remove reference to a 2019 fire that occurred at a different company's facility, unrelated to Shell.

March 5, 2025

Oil and gas giant Shell is considering a potential sale of its chemicals assets in both Europe and the U.S.—including its Deer Park facility in Houston, according to a new report.

The oil and natural gas company is working with bankers on a review of all of its chemical operations, according to the Wall Street Journal, which said the process is in its early stages and Shell has not yet made a decision.

The news of a potential sale comes after a September report said Shell may soon announce it is cutting 20 percent of its upstream workforce,

Shell has owned the chemical plant on the Houston Ship Channel since the 1940s, where it produces a range of chemicals such as light and heavy olefins, which can be used to make pharmaceuticals, detergents, adhesives and wire coating. The state of Texas sued Shell in 2023 following a three-day fire at its Deer Park chemicals facility, claiming the blaze led to environmental damage from contaminants and waste making its way into nearby waterways. The plant is right next to a former Shell refinery, which the company sold to Pemex in 2022.

Shell also has U.S. chemical plants in Pennsylvania and Louisiana.

The WSJ said potential bidders for the Houston chemical facility could include private equity firms or Middle Eastern buyers looking to expand into the U.S.

According to the WSJ, Shell's chemicals business has not been strong lately, resulting in losses in recent years that have affected the company's performance overall. Last year, Shell sold its refining and chemicals hub in Singapore.

Shell chief executive Wael Sawan has been focused on cutting costs and pivoting the company to its most profitable areas —oil, gas and biofuels—while getting away from renewables. The oil giant said last year that it would move away from its wind investments.

Deer Park, Texs has been the site of recent deadly accidents, with a chemical release that caused two deaths at the Pemex refinery in October and a pipeline explosion in September spurre by a driver suffering a medical event. The collision, and then explosion, ruptured the pipeline, ignited the natural gas liquids it was transporting and spewed a tower of flames that burned for more than three days. The intense heat burned and melted power lines and parts of nearby homes and cars. Hundreds of homes and businesses in Deer Park and La Porte were evacuated or lost power.

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March 4, 2025

News Editor

Allyson Ackerman is the News Editor at Chron. She previously was the Deputy News Editor at the New York Post, where she also served as the Deputy Business Editor. She left the Big Apple for Houston and can now often be found in a car driving her two kids around town.

DEER PARK, Texas – The sole cause of the Deer Park pipeline explosion and fire has been identified: the car that crashed into the pipeline.

A recently shared report from the Texas Railroad Commission, the state agency tasked with regulating pipelines, shows that the pipeline had zero safety violations.

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The report, obtained by KPRC 2, goes in-depth on the timeline leading up to the crash and the work that took place to get the pipeline back online in less than a week.

Report - Investigation Report (Incident) INSPPKG-0000102871 by Gage Goulding on Scribd

A vehicle, driven by Jonathan McEvoy, 51, of Deer Park, crashed into the pipeline off Spencer Highway on Sept. 16, 2024.

According to investigators, McEvoy crashed into the pipeline on purpose. His official cause of death was ruled a suicide.

The result of the crash was an explosion, with flames shooting a hundred feet into the sky

However, the investigation reveals that the pipeline itself was not at fault. The fire was triggered when a car collided with the pipeline, damaging a part of a pipeline that sticks out of the ground.

According to the investigation documents, the 20-inch pipeline spans across six counties and 126 miles.

The fire originated from a three-inch blowdown valve, a component of the underground pipeline that protrudes above ground, allowing crews to manage the flow beneath.

Despite the intensity of the fire, the investigation found no safety violations. The pipeline was functioning correctly until it was intentionally struck by a vehicle.

Today, many homes in the area are still in the process of being fixed or entirely rebuilt. But that doesn’t mean that every family is ready to move back in.

Some, like the Rodriguez Family, are left feeling uneasy, with some even considering selling their properties due to the perceived danger.

To prevent similar incidents, Energy Transfer, the owner of the pipeline, has installed large concrete barriers around the site and other similar locations. Although not legally required, these barriers serve as a precautionary measure to prevent vehicles from crashing into pipeline components.

This proactive approach aims to enhance safety and reassure the community, ensuring that such an event is less likely to occur again.