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Commissioning underway for biomass co-gen at Port Hawkesbury

The biomass-fueled Nova Scotia Power co-generation plant at the Port Hawkesbury Paper mill has already produced some power and is expected to be in full production by the end of June, according to the Cape Breton Post.

The biomass-fueled Nova Scotia Power co-generation plant at the Port Hawkesbury Paper mill has already produced some power and is expected to be in full production by the end of June, according to the Cape Breton Post.

Roger Burton, the utility’s senior director of projects, told the newspaper that testing is underway on the different components at the $200-million facility located at the Port Hawkesbury Paper site in Point Tupper, N.S.

The facility burn biomass to produce steam and electricity. It is expected to generate about 60 MW of electricity a year, enough to power about 50,000 homes. The utility is expected to consume about 500,000 tonnes of biomass fuel annually.

The plant has begun generating power during the commissioning process, which has gone as expected, Burton said.

The project was somewhat delayed when NewPage Port Hawkesbury, which was going to construct and operate the facility for Nova Scotia Power Inc., shut down indefinitely and entered creditor protection, the newspaper notes. NSP subsequently took over control of the project and NewPage’s assets were sold to a company affiliated with Stern Partners.