Weyerhaeuser to begin second phase of C$70M project at Grande Prairie, Alberta, pulp mill building evaporator plant; turbine generator will yield 27 MW of surplus electricity to sell to grid by this summer

Sandy Yang

LOS ANGELES , January 12, 2012 (Industry Intelligence) –

Weyerhaeuser Co. is ready to start building the evaporator plant at its pulp mill in Grande Prairie, Alberta, now that all the pieces are in place, reported the Daily Herald-Tribune on Jan. 12.

The work is the second phase of a larger C$70-million efficiency-improvement project which started last year with the startup of a new C$52-million turbine generator that will allow the mill to sell 27 megawatts of green electricity to the Alberta grid.

All the major equipment has now been received for the “ongoing construction project,” said Wayne Roznowsky, public affairs manager for Weyerhaeuser, which is headquartered in Federal Way, Washington, the Daily Herald-Tribune reported.

Currently, the steel work and structure is being built, Roznowsky said. The new evaporator plant is not expected to begin operating until mid-summer.

A seven-effect evaporator, which weighs 257 tonnes and is 55 meters (180 feet) long and more than seven meters high, was received at Grande Prairie on Oct. 22, reported the Daily Herald-Tribune.

The project will improve mill efficiency by freeing up as much as 100,000 pounds of steam per hour that can be directed to the turbine-generator. It also will allow the mill to generate enough electricity to provide 20% to 30% revenue, Roznowsky said.

An added benefit will be the reduction of greenhouse gases, with carbon dioxide releases to be lowered by more than 140,000 tonnes, the Daily Herald-Tribune reported.

Weyerhaeuser produces bleached northern kraft pulp (NBSK) at Grande Prairie and has a production capacity of 375,000 tonnes per year of paper-grade pulp and specialty cellulose fiber products, according to the company’s website.

The primary source of this article is the Daily Herald-Tribune, Grand Prairie, Alberta, on Jan. 12, 2012.
 

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