OCI Partners LP, a strategic methanol and ammonia plant in Texas, filed an initial public offering priced at US$480 million with the US regulators. The company was formed by fertilizer and construction group OCI NV.

OCI set up the limited partnership in February. The company announced earlier this month that it would offer a minority interest in the plant. This will transpire in the second half of the year through an IPO.

The plant situated in Texas has yearly methanol production capacity of roughly 730,000 metric tons. This makes the company the biggest merchant methanol producer in the country according to the preliminary prospectus filed Friday.

The net proceeds of the IPO is said to repay the company's debt. It will also be used to finance projects that will increase its yearly ammonia production by 15% and its methanol production by 25%.

Barclays, BofA Merrill Lynch and Citigroup are lead underwriters to the IPO.