Inter Pipeline Ltd., an oil transportation and natural gas liquids processing company based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, commissioned its polypropylene plant and began initial production under the Heartland Polymers brand.
The propane is converted into polypropylene. (Photo: MBPROJEKT_Maciej_Bledowski/iStock/Getty Images Plus/Getty Images)
The entire Heartland complex remains on schedule for an integrated start-up in the third quarter of this year, when Heartland will begin commercial production, according to the company.
Construction of the complex began in early 2018. Plans are underway to convert locally sourced low-cost propane into 525,000 tonnes per year of polypropylene, a high-value multi-use plastic that is easily transported and can be recycled . This polymer is used in the manufacture of a range of end products such as food packaging, textiles, health care products and medical supplies.
The polypropylene plant was commissioned using polymer-grade propylene feedstock from a cavern at Inter Pipeline’s Redwater Olefin Fractionator. The primary feedstock source will be an on-site propane dehydrogenation (PDH) plant, which will consume 22,000 barrels of propane per day and process it into polymer-grade propylene. The PDH plant is expected to go into integrated operation with the polypropylene plant in the third quarter of this year.
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