In January 2020, the grid supplied 100% of the energy from biomass combustion while facing record temperatures of -42ºC.
The system has been supplying hot water for heating to 11 public buildings since 2012, thanks to the 13 MW biomass boiler located at the Lakeland Mills sawmill.
The industry signed an agreement with the city council to supply up to 5 MW of energy. The municipality expects more buildings to be connected to the grid in the coming years. The agreement included the delivery of an electrostatic precipitator by the city council to the company. The equipment removes more than 95% of the particulate matter from the combustion gases.
The replacement of natural gas with biomass and the installation of combustion gas purification equipment have contributed to a significant improvement in air quality in the city., according to William Wedel, head of Prince George's public services.
The 3 km pipeline network is organized into two circuits; the first connects the boiler to a heat exchanger through which the energy passes to a second circuit that reaches the municipal plant from where the hot water is pumped to the consuming buildings. Each building has its own heat exchanger and internal circuit.
The city's boiler room has two 2.5 MW natural gas boilers as backup in case of the unlikely event of a breakdown or maintenance of the main boiler.. The biomass boiler consumes between 2 and 5 m³3 of biofuel per day from its activity: sawing by-products, bark, shavings.
The cost savings are very significant. For just one of the buildings, the one housing the courts, they are estimated at 175,000 Canadian dollars per year – in the purchase of emission rights and natural gas.
Despite the enormous benefits of a biomass-fueled district heating network, Prince George is one of the few examples in Canada. Wedel believes this is partly due to the abundance of natural gas and other energy sources in the country. But things are changing, he says.
Fountain
https://www.princegeorge.ca/City%20Services/Pages/Utilities/DistrictEnergy.aspx