ADDYSTON, Ohio — The company at the center of a styrene leak that forced evacuations and closures in Whitewater Township announced it is permanently closing its Addyston plant.
INEOS said in an Oct. 30 release it will begin a "safe and responsible decommissioning process" at its production site in Addyston in the second quarter of 2025. The site manufactures acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) and styrene acrylonitrile (SAN) polymers that are used in several different industries.
CEO Steve Harrington said the decision to close the plant came after the company analyzed the plant's economic value and the investment needed to continue to be competitive.
"This difficult yet necessary decision is driven primarily by external market conditions and is not a reflection of the performance or dedication of our team in Addyston," Harrington said in a release. "The Company recognizes the significant impact this decision will have on affected employees and is fully committed to respectfully, supporting them through this transition."
Harrington did not note the styrene leak in the release.
Addyston Mayor Lisa Mear said the closure is "devastating" for the village, which gets more than a third of its total tax receipts from earnings taxes on plant employees.
"This is gonna seriously impact our community and our people here," Mear said. "I would definitely like some answers on how they plan on pulling out and what this is going to look like for us."
Plant officials could not be reached for comments about the "decommissioning process" it announced in Wednesday's press release. Nor did they answer questions about how many people still work at the plant, which began as a pipe and steel company in 1889 and switched to plastics when Monsanto bought it in 1952.
Officials believe a failed stabilizer led to the styrene leak on Sept. 24 from a rail car on U.S. 50 near Kilby Road. On the day of the mishap, the Federal Emergency Management Agency told Hamilton County officials that an explosion could kill 227 people and seriously injure 281 more.
A Central Railroad of Indiana official said it allowed the styrene tankers to stay on its tracks before the leak began because its customer, the INEOS plant, did not have the capacity to receive them.
So far, the only public statement made by INEOS on the incident is in a federal court filing where it successfully argued to combine five pending lawsuits into one proposed class-action case. The consolidated complaint seeks more than $5 million on behalf of thousands of Ohio residents, including people who lived outside of the evacuation zone but were still impacted by the styrene leak.
“INEOS makes no admission of any fact or the existence of any class, injury, or liability for any defendant. INEOS states the allegations asserted in the state court actions for purposes of removal only,” wrote attorneys from Taft Stettinius & Hollister law firm, in an October court filing.
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