| Ethane |
14.06
-0.29
|
|---|---|
| Propane |
4.02
-0.49
|
| N. Gasoline |
-21.34
-0.80
|
| Butane |
-13.31
-5.56
|
| Last updated: October 2, 2026 05:57 | |
Petchem Margins
As we described in the Let’s Get Crackin' series, there are no more important relationships in NGL markets than the margins for NGLs used in olefin crackers for the manufacture of ethylene, propylene and other petrochemicals. The petrochemical sector makes up more than half of the demand for all NGLs. For ethane, the sector is 100% of the market. About one-third of propane goes to the petchems (historically with higher volumes going to the petchems in the summer), and some butane and natural gasoline. In Let’s Get Crackin' we explained the fundamental fact of feedstock acquisition of the ethylene cracker industry: the best feedstock is the one that will produce the highest margin possible, after deducting byproduct credits. In this graph we show those margins for ethane and propane based on ‘typical’ U.S. Gulf Coast olefin cracker product yields.
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