USA: Watson Lake LNG Project Accepted by YESAB

Yukon Electrical Co. Ltd. announced that its application for the Watson Lake liquefied natural gas (LNG) project has been accepted by the Yukon Environmental Assessment Board (YESAB).

The project, to be undertaken in partnership with ATCO Gas and ATCO Energy Solutions, will now move to the ‘seeking views and information’ phase of the evaluation process.

“We are very excited to undertake this project – the first of its kind in Yukon, to explore the potential for LNG as a safe and affordable alternative fuel for electricity generation,” said Dwight Redden, General Manager, Yukon Electrical. “We believe that once a supply chain has been established for LNG in the North, the cost savings and environmental benefits from displacing the use of diesel will be very positive.”

The project will convert one of the six diesel-fired electrical generators at Watson Lake to a bi-fuel system able to accept natural gas. About 50 per cent of the diesel consumed by the generator is expected to be displaced by natural gas, equating to a reduction of on-site carbon dioxide emissions of approximately 300 tonnes per year – equivalent to permanently removing 60 vehicles from the road annually.

Yukon Electrical expects that the cost of LNG, which will be transported from a location in southwestern BC to an on-site storage facility in Watson Lake, will be competitive with diesel. ATCO Gas will construct and maintain the storage and vaporization facility that will be required to convert the LNG back to a gas for use in the generator. The construction and conversion is expected to begin in the spring of 2013, with start-up anticipated in the fall.

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LNG World News Staff, April 16, 2013; Image: Yukon Electrical