Power Projects
MRM Cogeneration Station
The MRM Cogeneration Station is a 172-MW cogeneration facility, located at the Muskeg River Mine, 75 kilometres north of Fort McMurray and is part of the Athabasca Oil Sands Project (AOSP), which is owned by Shell Canada Limited (60%), Chevron Canada Limited (20%), and Marathon Oil Sands L.P. (20%).
The MRM Cogeneration Station is owned 30 per cent by SaskPower International and 70 per cent by ATCO Power.
The plant operates in a highly efficient cogeneration mode, which is the simultaneous production of electricity and steam from a single fuel source using combustion gas turbines and heat recovery steam generators.
The plant consists of two natural gas fuelled combustion turbines and generators. The exhaust gas from each gas turbine are sent through a waste heat recover boiler to produce steam that is used in the mine's bitumen extraction process. The Muskeg River Mine will use all the steam output from the cogeneration facility and currently uses about half of the power output, with the remaining power being sold into the Alberta power grid.
The MRM Cogeneration Station's design enables it to generate electricity with minimal effect on the environment. Both of the gas turbines are equipped with low NOx combustors to minimize the environmental impact of generating electricity. The MRM Cogeneration Station turns approximately 84 per cent of the natural gas's potential energy into electricity and steam - compared to an average of 33 per cent achieved by conventional power stations - while emissions of greenhouse gases are only about one-third of a similarly sized coal-fired power station.
Capacity
- 172 megawatts
Equipment
- Two GE 7EA gas-fired turbine and generator sets with low nitrous oxide burners
- Two heat recovery steam generators with supplemental heat injection.
- Two standby auxiliary gas-fired boilers.
- Associated control equipment
Highlights
- Muskeg River Mine currently uses about 50 per cent of electric energy generated. The remaining balance of electricity is sold into the Alberta Power Pool.
Commercial Operations
- January 2003
Ownership
- SaskPower International Inc. - 30%
- ATCO Group - 70%