Edmonton International Airport Cogeneration Plant

The Project

Part of Edmonton International Airport?s (EIA) vision for energy management included a cogeneration solution that would enable them to create power on-site, using the most efficient technology and using fuels with low emission properties. This project is a driver of the airport?s master sustainability plan, which underpins one of its core values: environmental stewardship.�

ATCO played a key role in bringing this vision to life, designing and constructing a three 1.4 megawatt (MW) natural gas cogeneration facility along with a 25 kilovolt (kV) natural gas insulated switchgear (GIS). ATCO helped secure $1.8 million of funding for the EIA from Energy Efficiency Alberta?s Custom Energy Solutions program, of which ATCO is a program ally.

The three combined heat and power (CHP) units provide on-site electric power generation and heating for the main terminal complex of the EIA. Natural gas fired cogeneration allows the airport to produce its own electricity on-site, avoiding energy losses associated with traditional grid electricity services and decreasing carbon emissions.�

Due to the high efficiency of natural gas, less fuel is burned to produce a unit of energy, further reducing emissions and operating costs. The thermal heat produced by cogeneration is collected and used in the facility, reducing fuel consumption by the airport?s boilers to produce heat.

As as a result of the power plant upgrades:

• There will be reduced energy losses.
• There will be decreased carbon emissions.
• There will be reduced fuel consumption to produce heat.
• EIA's annual carbon emissions will be reduced by approximately 20% or 7,000-8,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalent per year, which is roughly the same as taking 2,400 vehicles off the road.
• EIA?s energy costs will be reduced by roughly $800,000 per year at full operations.

The airport's selection criteria for this project included a rigorous process for a vendor whose sustainability objectives aligned with those of EIA. ATCO?s role in this project was to deliver a turnkey integrated cogeneration solution that is safer, more reliable, decreases outage risk, and lowers overall carbon footprint. ATCO provided engineering, procurement and construction (EPC), and project management services for the design of the integrated system, in addition to procurement, construction, commissioning, and verification of three 1.4 megawatt (MW) natural gas cogenerators.

The brownfield site with existing infrastructure posed unique challenges, requiring formidable expertise and patience on behalf of the team. Preexisting above and below ground infrastructure, such as a gas transfer station, overhead power lines, and a communications tower, meant that the team had to think outside the box to successfully bring the project ? and three enormous cogeneration units ? together. Ultimately, ATCO faced these complexities head-on and delivered a cleaner, more reliable energy solution for the EIA.