Electricity – Facilities
Application
Air Products Canada Ltd. (“APC”) applied for permission to construct and operate a 90.5-megawatt combined-cycle power plant and a substation at its proposed hydrogen facility – the Edmonton 3 H2 Plant. APC also applied for an order designating the power plant and substation facilities as an industrial system (“ISD”).
Decision
The AUC approved the applications from APC.
Applicable Legislation
AUC Rule 012: Noise Control
Alberta Utilities Commission Act, SA 2007, c A-37.2.
Alberta Ambient Air Quality Objectives and Guidelines.
Electric Utilities Act, SA 2003, c E-5.1.
Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act, RSA 2000, c E-12.
Hydro and Electric Energy Act, RSA 2000, c H-16.
Pertinent Issues
The majority of the electricity supplied by the power plant will be used by the Edmonton 3 H2 Plant and any excess electricity will be exported to the Alberta Interconnected Electric System. The Edmonton 3 H2 Plant, including the power plant, substation, and hydrogen facility is designed to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions and is likely to result in significant benefits to Albertans.
The AUC found that the facilities applications met the requirements set out in Rule 007: Applications for Power Plants, Substations, Transmission Lines, Industrial System Designations, Hydro Developments and Gas Utility Pipelines and Rule 012: Noise Control.
The AUC acknowledged that emissions from the proposed power plant would exceed the Alberta Ambient Air Quality Objectives for cumulative fine particulate matter. The AUC however determined that the contribution is minor relative to the existing background concentration.
The AUC found that APC’s application for ISD met the principles and criteria for ISD because as Air Products owns and operates both the hydrogen facility and the electric facilities, and there is therefore a high degree of integration of management of the components and the processes of the industrial operations.
