nrg focus - october 2011 issue
DESCRIPTION
For our 4th edition of NRG Focus we will continue to bring clarity to experiences and activities that help optimize our Westinghouse Plasma gasification technology. In this issue, we will provide updates on our Westinghouse Plasma Center and its ability to produce clean syngas – an essential building block for energy and liquid fuel applications. As well, we will touch on significant testing milestones, project updates and the recent visit to the Utashinai facility in Japan. It has been a busy quarter and we are pleased to share some of these activities through this edition. Please read on and we hope you enjoy this latest edition of NRG Focus. From the team at Alter NRG www.alternrg.comTRANSCRIPT
OCTOBER 2011
™
A GLOBAL OUTLOOKTECHNOLOGY | REVIEW | UPDATE
Westinghouse Co-location Opportunity
Technology Commercialization
Utashinai Visit
Flex Ethanol Testing
SPOTLIGHT
For our 4th edition of NRG Focus we will
continue to bring clarity to experiences and
activities that help optimize our
Westinghouse Plasma gasification
technology. In this issue, we will provide
updates on our Westinghouse Plasma
Center and its ability to produce clean
syngas – an essential building block for
energy and liquid fuel applications. As well,
we will touch on significant testing
milestones, project updates and the recent
visit to the Utashinai facility in Japan. It has
been a busy quarter and we are pleased to
share some of these activities through this
edition. Please read on and we hope you
enjoy this latest edition of NRG Focus.
From the team at Alter NRG
Content & Design: Alter NRG Corp. - Corporate Development Team
Past Issues: www.alternrg.com/investor_relations/presentations/publications
Alter NRG Corp. is a registered trademark. All other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners. The information contained herein cannot be reproduced in any format without legal permission from Alter NRG Corp., and is subject to change without notice. Copyright © 2011. All rights reserved.
Cover Photo: Exterior of Alter NRG’s state-of-the-art Facility in Madison, PA, USA
Contents
www.alternrg.com
Visit to Utashinai, Japan ______3
Flex Ethanol Testing ___________4
SPoTlIGhT oN
Co-location opportunity ____ 5-9• Choosing Westinghouse Plasma Center _______ 6
• Commercial Demonstration Facility _____________ 7
• Technology Commercialization __________________ 8
• Real-time Syngas Production _____________________ 9
Project Updates ___________10-11• Dufferin _______________________________________________ 10
• Air Products __________________________________________ 10
• Phoenix Energy _____________________________________ 11
ISSUE | OCTOBER 20112
Utashinai
JAPAN
Visit to Utashinai FacilityOn September 12, 2011, Ken Willis of Alter NRG hosted eight customers at
the Eco-Valley Facility in Utashinai, Japan. Attendees visited the facility to
witness the Westinghouse Plasma gasification technology operating
commercially firsthand.
Six delegates from Dufferin County, ontario attended including:
The delegates from Dufferin County, Ontario wanted to visit the Eco-Valley facility to see the
Westinghouse Plasma gasification technology operating in a commercial setting. Alter NRG’s
technology was selected as the keystone technology for an energy from waste facility at the
Dufferin Eco-Energy Park. The environmental screening process for the energy from waste
facility has commenced and is well underway.
Also, Alter NRG’s plasma gasification representative in the Czech Republic and Slovakia,
Petr Brenek of BKB Metal, hosted a client from the Czech Republic.
Alter NRG hosts customers and clients from all over the world at the Utashinai
facility typically once per year. If you are interested in visiting the site,
please contact Alter NRG for more information.
www.AlterNRG.com
● Mayor of Melancthon
● Mayor of Amaranth
● Deputy Mayor of East Garafraxa
● Director of Public Works, Dufferin County
● CDC Public Member
Eco-Valley Facility Visitors to Eco-Valley
3 NRG FOCUS | By alter nrg
Flex Ethanol
Australia is
developing a
project in
Melbourne,
Australia, where
it plans on
converting MSW,
tires and sewage
sludge into more
than 200 million
liters of ethanol
a year
Taking the necessary steps to bring the Flex Ethanol Australia Project to life includes
conducting a comprehensive test at the Westinghouse Plasma Center & Coskata’s co-
located semi-commercial facility to test the suitability of Australian-specific household waste
for ethanol production. Testing was recently conducted at the Westinghouse Plasma Center
with successful results.
The results of the test will be used by the Flex Ethanol Australia project engineering team to
understand the equipment needed for the commercial project, refine the facility design
and operation.
About Flex Ethanol Australia ● GM Holden, Caltex and Phoenix Energy (Alter NRG technology licensee in Australia)
partnering on project
● Flex Ethanol Australia is a new company that has been formed to prepare for commercial
production of ethanol from household waste for use in Australian cars.
● The facility will ultimately be capable of turning up to one million tonnes of household
rubbish and building waste into more than 200 million liters of ethanol each year
● One of Flex Ethanol Australia’s first steps in project development is a test at the
Westinghouse Plasma Center to determine the suitability of Australian household waste
for ethanol production.
Westinghouse Plasma Ethanol Testing Success
“The testing data has been essential to the project
engineering team as we refine the commercial plant
design, to gain operational efficiencies and reduce
the overall capital of our 200 million liter per year
waste-to-ethanol facility.
-Phoenix Energy (Australia)
Key Stakeholders
ISSUE | OCTOBER 20114
We are seeking a technology that would utilize the syngas we generate on-site using the Westinghouse Plasma gasification
technology to feed a complementary recipient technology, such as:
A World Class Co-Location Opportunity
Westinghouse Plasma Corporation is currently running a strategic process
to co-locate one or more syngas recipient technologies at the
Westinghouse Plasma Center in Madison, Pennsylvania, USA
If you are interested in having your technology located at the
Westinghouse Plasma Center, please contact Bruce leonard,
Manager Corporate Development at Alter NRG for more details.
Bruce leonard Manager, Corporate Development
Alter NRG Corp., 215, 4000 – 4th Street SE Calgary, Alberta T2G 2W3
Phone: 403.214.4211, Fax: 403.806.3721Email: [email protected]
SPOTLIGHT
Electricity generation
● Gas Turbines
● Steam Turbines
● Engines
● Fuel Cells
● Micro Turbines
Synthetic fuels
● Ethanol
● hydrogen
● Methanol
● Diesel
5 NRG FOCUS | By alter nrg
Commercial Demonstration Facility Process Flow Diagram
Over 125 tests have been conducted at the Westinghouse Plasma
Commercial Demonstration Facility producing clean syngas
• Capable of processing multiple feedstocks in blended or pure form
Plasma Gasifier
• Clean Syngas
• Ability to tailor the syngas composition to the specification of the recipient technology
Syngas Cleanup
Feedstocks Flexibility
● Refuse Derived Fuel
● Simulated MSW
● Hazardous wastes and simulated
hazardous wastes
● Coal
● Biomass
● Oily Sludge
● Excavated Landfill Material
(ELM) - PCB disposal
● MSW Fly Ash
● Ferro-Nickel
● High Quartz Iron Ore
● Black Liquor
● Tire Derived Fuel
● Iron Borings
● Iron Oxide
● Iron Bearing Pellets
Note: Feedstocks can also be blended and mixed for testing at the Pilot Plant. Feedstocks listed as waste must be chemically and physically simulated.
The Westinghouse Plasma Center’s operations validate our technical performance projections as well as the plasma gasification island and syngas clean up capability. This significantly reduces risks associated with the full scale commercialization of projects.
More than 100 distinct types of feedstock have been tested at the
Westinghouse Plasma Commercial Demonstration Facility including:
ISSUE | OCTOBER 20116
The Westinghouse Plasma Center is the only facility in North
America capable of creating a clean syngas from a variety of
feedstocks (municipal solid waste, biomass, e-waste, medical
waste, sludges etc.) that can be tailored to meet your
technology’s specifications. Several benefits of co-locating a
technology at the Westinghouse Plasma Center exist, including:
1. Transition a technology from lab scale to a commercial demonstration
2. Perform specific testing to optimize the design and operation of current or future products or facilities
3. Gain access to world class exposure and business development opportunities
● Investors, project developers, Fortune 500 clients and
politicians visit the Westinghouse Plasma Center to see
the technology in action
● Access to Westinghouse Plasma Corp.’s multi-billion
dollar sales pipeline
Why choose the Westinghouse Plasma Center?
The Westinghouse Plasma gasification technology has processed over 100
different feedstocks in blended or pure form. The syngas composition can
be tailored to meet the specifications of the downstream application
Location
Adjacent to the Westinghouse Plasma Corp.’s
Pilot Plant in Madison, Pennsylvania
Advantages
●● Clean syngas generated on demand.
The syngas can be stored onsite and consumed
as needed
●● Capable of generating clean, cool, compressed
syngas from a wide variety of feedstocks
●● Syngas analysis capabilities onsite
●● 1 hour drive from Pittsburgh International
Airport
Site Available
As early as Q1 2012
SItelocatIon
The Westinghouse Plasma Center
7 NRG FOCUS | By alter nrg
Technology Commercialization
Second Generation Cellulosic Ethanol Technology at the Westinghouse Plasma Center
Coskata’s cellulosic ethanol semi-commercial facility is located adjacent to the
Westinghouse Plasma Center where the syngas can either be piped directly into the
bio-reactor to create ethanol or stored for later use. Coskata’s microorganisms
convert the Westinghouse Plasma made syngas into ethanol by consuming the
carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen (H2) in the gas stream.
Westinghouse Plasma has conducted 35 tests since Coskata has been on-site. With
each test, Coskata’s technology moved one step closer to becoming commercial.
Initially, the technology was a ‘start-up’ technology that was proven in a laboratory.
The semi-commercial facility has validated to investors and government agencies that
the technology is proven and as a result Coskata is now focusing on commercial
facilities.
What started as a concept is now a commercial reality:
The Process
The semi-commercial
facility has taken
Coskata’s technology
from the laboratory
to the world stage
“The Westinghouse Plasma
Center has allowed Coskata
to successfully scale our
cellulosic ethanol technology
from a laboratory setting to
a commercial demonstration.
The Westinghouse Plasma
gasification technology
was able to create syngas
from a variety of feedstocks
that met our specifications.
Furthermore, the world wide
exposure that our ethanol
technology has received
while being co-located at
at the Westinghouse Plasma
Center has provided Coskata
with some very promising
commercial opportunities that
are now under development.
- James Fawley, VP, Strategic
Business Development
ISSUE | OCTOBER 20118
Real-time Syngas Production
Supports the Development of an Energy from Waste facility in the UK
The Tees Valley commercial facility will be capable of processing 950 tonnes per
day of non-recyclable waste using the Westinghouse Plasma gasification
technology. The facility is planning on producing 49MW of electricity through a
combined cycle process – the first of its kind Energy from Waste plant in the world.
Conducting tests at the Westinghouse Plasma Commercial Demonstration facility
has been imperative to the successful engineering and development of the Tees
Valley Project.
Using the similar calorific value and composition of waste that will be processed at
the commercial facility, testing was conducted at the Westinghouse Plasma
Commercial Demonstration Facility where the resultant syngas was captured for
testing. The testing results are used to determine:
● Particulate characteristics of the syngas which is taken into account for equipment
design and selection of the commercial facility
● Slag composition and leaching tests are used for the environmental permitting of
the facility
The Westinghouse
Plasma Commercial
Demonstration
Facility has been
instrumental in
helping Air Products
develop their Energy
from Waste
combined cycle
facility in Tees
Valley, UK
The continuous feedback loop between testing at the Westinghouse Plasma Center and the project
developer results in an optimized design:
Westinghouse Plasma Center Demonstration Facility, Madison, Pennsylvania
Tees Valley Project, UK
9 NRG FOCUS | By alter nrg
Project Updates
Dufferin Project:Environmental Screening ProcessNavitus Plasma Inc. (Navitus) is moving
forward on its Environmental Screening
Process for the Dufferin County energy from
waste facility that will utilize the
commercially proven Westinghouse Plasma
Gasification
technology.
The Environmental
Screening Process
assesses the potential
environmental effects
of the Project during
construction, operation
and decommissioning,
as defined in the
Ontario Environmental Assessment Act. Opportunities
to discuss the Project will be provided throughout the
Environmental Screening process and will be
advertised in local newspapers, on this website and
by direct mail-out. To communicate your questions or
comments or to be added to our Project distribution
list please visit www.navitusplasma.com. The first
public consultation and information session is
expected to be held in Q4 of 2011.
The overall results of the Environmental Screening
Process will be documented in an Environmental
Screening Report which will be released for public
review. It is anticipated the Report will be released in
Q1 or early in Q2 of 2012. Construction on the facility
is targeted to start in the fall of 2012.
Application for the necessary air and water
certificates will be made simultaneously and parallel
to the Environmental
Screening Process.
Air Products secures planning permission for the Tees Valley Renewable Energy FacilityAir Products has secured planning
permission from Stockton on Tees Borough
Council for its Tees Valley Renewable
Energy Facility. The facility is the first of a
number of energy from waste plants that
Air Products will be looking to develop in
the UK over the next few years.
The UK is seeking more sustainable ways to manage
and dispose of its waste, and is looking to diversify its
sources of electricity generation: our technology is
able to deliver on both counts commented Ian, “In the
longer-term, our technology can also produce
renewable hydrogen and is being considered for a
demonstration of Waste2Tricity’s alkaline fuel cell
technology to generate electricity. So our renewable
energy facility could also play a part in the further
development of the hydrogen economy, an area in
which Air Products already has
considerable experience.”
Liaison and discussions
with agencies, the
public and Aboriginal
communities will be
an integral part of the
Screening Process and
to make sure that they
are provided with the
necessary assurances that
the project is viable and
safe to the environment “Air Products, along with our technology
partner, Alter NRG, see Tees Valley
as the first of a number of advanced
gasification facilities that we wish to
develop in the UK.
- Ian Williamson, European Hydrogen
and Bioenergy Director, Air Products
ISSUE | OCTOBER 201110
Phoenix Energy (formally Moltoni Energy) advances Australia’s first major thermal energy from waste facility in Kwinana
In addition to the Flex Ethanol Australia project, Phoenix Energy, Alter NRG’s exclusive licensee in Australia,
is currently developing a $300-$400 million energy from waste plant in Kwinana, Australia. The facility has
completed the first stage of its engineering assessment and is now being commercially assessed.
The facility will incorporate two technologies: the main plant will use a Martin Grate high-temperature mass
combustion unit while the second much smaller plant will use the Westinghouse Plasma gasification
technology. The Martin Grate unit will process municipal solid waste and some commercial and industrial
waste while the Westinghouse Plasma gasification plant will process industrial waste generated from within
the Kwinana industrial area. The syngas generated from the plasma gasification process will be used in the
Martin Grate plant to augment firing conditions.
High-temperature steam and/or electricity for the local grid could be produced from the Martin Grate unit
while one of the by-products of the plasma gasification process would include slag suitable for paving and
other applications.
If the Kwinana energy from waste project proves to be commercially and technically viable, Phoenix Energy
will then consult with local communities and undertake a
detailed facility design.
Artist Rendition of Phoenix Energy’s Proposed Facility
“As this will be the first facility of this type in Australia, the
facility will also create a knowledge base among local
contractors and engineering firms that will become sought
after by other states as they begin to adopt a proven solution
that has been deployed around the world for years.
- Peter Dyson, Managing Director,
Phoenix Energy
“Assuming the project continues to be viable
through the various gateways, we would
expect commissioning to occur in 2014 or
early 2015.
- Peter Dyson, Managing Director,
Phoenix Energy.
11 NRG FOCUS | By alter nrg
www.alternrg.com
Alter NRG provides clean energy
solutions that are economically viable
and environmentally sustainable.
Westinghouse Plasma Corp.
The industry leading plasma gasification
technology that provides clean and
renewable energy solutions by converting
all types of waste and biomass into high
value energy - like electricity, ethanol or
syngas. With plasma systems in operation for
20 years and converting waste into energy
since 2002, the technology is commercially
proven and produces lower emissions than
other conventional energy technologies.