Reducing Emissions and Improving Thermal Generation Efficiency
At our Genesee Generating Station in Alberta we are working to reduce and eventually eliminate coal as part of our fuel mix. In 2019, we will complete the third year of our innovative five-year Genesee Performance Standard (GPS), a $35 million efficiency improvement program aimed at reducing fuel consumption and our carbon footprint by 12% by 2021, and by a further 40% after conversion to natural gas.
Our Genesee 3 unit is Canada’s first power generation facility to use supercritical combustion technology for greater fuel efficiency and lower emissions. Environmental performance is enhanced by supercritical combustion and clean air technologies, which achieve greater efficiency and lower CO2, NOx and SO2 emissions per megawatt compared to older technologies. CO2 emissions from these units are approximately 24% lower than emissions from recently retired coal-fired generation in Alberta.
Clean-air technologies include:
- Fabric filters that stop 99.8% of particulate matter from reaching the atmosphere
- A flue gas desulphurization unit that brings sulphur dioxide (SO2) emissions well below the provincial emission standard, and less than half the emissions produced by vintage facilities
- Low nitrous oxide (NOx) burners that reduce NOx emissions by 70%
We also invest our time and expertise to ensure our facilities in operation are continuously optimized and running efficiently. At our Decatur Energy Center, we recently upgraded a combustion turbine to improve efficiency and output. The upgrades are also expected to improve environmental performance through reduced emissions.
“The Decatur upgrade is a perfect example of how we’re making significant investments in innovative technologies to improve generation performance at our facilities, leading the way to more efficient and low-carbon generation.” – Darcy Trufyn, SVP Operations, Engineering & Construction