Momentive Specialty Chemicals Inc. will construct a chemical production facility in Luling, LA, in St. Charles Parish and upgrade the plant it currently operates in Geismar, LA, in Ascension Parish at a combined cost of $66 million. The expansions will increase Momentive’s production of formaldehyde for use by nearby chemical plants in the manufacture of other products. “The additional capacity, which is complementary to our existing integrated network of assets, will enable us to meet the anticipated growth in the Gulf Coast region for several significant and longtime customers,” said Dale Plante, Momentive executive vice president. The Luling plant is expected to begin operations in the first quarter of 2016, and the Geismar plant expansion should come online in the fourth quarter of 2015, the company said. When completed, the plants will have the capacity to produce more than 400,000 metric tons of formaldehyde per year. Formaldehyde is used as a key additive and binding ingredient in engineered wood products and in of other chemicals and products, including herbicides and fungicides.