More than seven years after China-backed efforts began to build natural gas-fed methanol manufacturing along the Columbia River in the Pacific Northwest, a single site may have been resuscitated in Washington.

The Washington Ecology Department issued a draft second supplemental environmental impact statement (SSEIS) for the proposed Northwest Innovation Works (NWIW) methanol facility in Port Kalama. NWIW secured added financial backing from global shipper Hafnia Ltd., which also agreed to ship one-third of the production.

NWIW has sought to develop a 3.6 million metric tons/year facility at the port to convert more than 30 Bcf of natural gas to methanol. Production would be transported for use in Asian markets.

NWIW general counsel Kent Caputo said the SSEIS reflects “an...