US technology and chemical company W.R. Grace has licensed its Unipol PP process for Inter Pipeline’s Heartland petrochemical complex in Alberta, Canada.

Inter Pipeline is building the country’s first integrated propane dehydrogenation (PDH) and PP complex, which will convert locally sourced, low-cost propane into 525,000 t/y of PP. The complex, to cost roughly $3.5 billion, will be located in Strathcona County, near Inter Pipeline’s existing Redwater olefinic fractionator.

Propane feedstock will be sourced from the Redwater fractionator as well as several other third-party fractionators in the region. Detailed engineering for the PDH plant was awarded to Fluor Corp. in 2013 and construction of this unit started in February.

Germany’s Linde Engineering was awarded in 2017 the front end engineering design (FEED) contract for the PP plant, and construction on this facility is scheduled to begin in the second half of 2018.Completion of the complex is scheduled for late 2021.

According to Grace, Unipol is the simplest of all PP processes,with no moving parts inside the reactor and less equipment than alternative technologies, resulting in lower capital, operating and maintenance costs.

David Chappell, senior vice president of petrochemical development at Inter Pipeline, said the technology provides tremendous flexibility to quickly and cost effectively meet customers’ requirements.

W.R. Grace granted a Unipol license last July for another PP plant being built in Canada by Canada Kuwait Petrochemical Corp, a 50:50 joint venture between Pembina Pipeline and Kuwait’s Petrochemical Industries Company. The PDH/PP integrated facility will be built in Sturgeon County, Alberta and produce 550,000 t/y of PP resins.´