Methanex sues over MTBE bans
By Staff -- Purchasing, 7/15/1999 6:00:00 AM
Methanex of Vancouver, B.C., the world's largest methanol producer, will seek nearly a billion dollars in damages (and maybe more) under the North American Free Trade Agreement if California, Maine, Connecticut, and New York either ban or restrict MTBE, a gasoline additive. Methanol-based MTBE (methyl tertiary butyl ether) has been used since the 1970s to make gasoline burn more efficiently. Originally hailed as a valuable tool to improve air quality by reducing auto emissions, the additive has come under attack recently as a contaminant of ground water supplies. Gov. Gray Davis wants to end its sale in California by 2002. The state is the largest single market for MTBE in the U.S., and other states often use its rules for auto emissions as a model. Methanex President Pierre Choquette says MTBE has been unfairly targeted. Choquette believes the issue of water contamination would be better addressed by fixing leaking fuel tanks than by banning MTBE.
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