Enterprise to add PDH plant at Mont ...

LyondellBasell Industries NV and Enterprise Products Partners LP have executed long-term contracts that will support construction of a second propane dehydrogenation (PDH) plant at Enterprise’s complex in the Mont Belvieu, Tex., area.

The PDH plant, which will have the capacity to process up to 35,000 b/d of propane to produce up to 1.65 billion lb/year of polymer-grade propylene (PGP), is scheduled to begin service in first-half 2023, Enterprise said.

S&B Engineers & Constructors Ltd. will deliver engineering, procurement, and construction services on PDH 2, while Honeywell UOP LLC will license its proprietary Oleflex propane process for the unit’s production of PGP, Enterprise said, without disclosing values of either the EPC or technology licensing contracts.

Enterprise did confirm, however, that it is currently building a second isobutane dehydrogenation plant at Mont Belvieu based on the Oleflex butane process, which due to be completed later this year (OGJ Online, Jan. 8, 2018).

Agreement overview

Established under a fee-based model, the anchor contracts for PDH 2 are service-based, under which Enterprise processes LyondellBasell-provided propane to PGP for a fixed fee. The fee-based model leverages Enterprise’s integrated value chain by providing sourcing and storage from Enterprise’s NGL storage facilities in Mont Belvieu and delivers PGP into its open-market storage hub and expanding network of PGP pipeline infrastructure, the operator said.

Enterprise’s network of PGP assets includes more than 300 miles of delivery pipelines, 26 PGP connections, more than 5 million bbl of storage capacity, and an export terminal on the Houston Ship Channel.

Enterprise said it is currently expanding PGP refrigeration facilities at the terminal, which will enable the company to load more than 5,000 bbl/hr of PGP, as well as co-load PGP and LPG on very large gas carriers.

Enterprise’s Mont Belvieu NGL fractionation and storage system supporting PDH 2 currently has 760,000 b/d of NGL fractionation capacity, with another 300,000 b/d under construction. These complexes also have more than 100 million bbl of NGL and petrochemical storage.

Enterprise said it expects integration of the PDH 1 and PDH 2 plants with the company’s propylene fractionation facilities will provide operational flexibility for both processes, as well as a combined PGP supply of more than 9 billion lb/year.