Keephills 3 Construction Bulletin - TransAlta · Steam blows are critical and prudent to...
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K3 Outreach Team: Capital Power Dave Conlin, K3 Project Manager Aaron Marlatt, Construction Manager Dave Wruck, Construction Site Manager Tony Smith, Permitting Lead Jennifer Lowry Senior Advisor, Public Consultation TransAlta Craig Beattie, Project Manager Ralph Leriger, Manager, Community Relations Cheryl McNeil, Seinior Community Relations Advisor How To Contact Us: If you have concerns or questions about the Keephills 3 project, please contact our toll-free K3 stakeholder hotline and email address below. 1-877-636-7823 [email protected] We are committed to respond to you in a timely manner. Capital Power and TransAlta are committed to being your first and best source of information about the construction of K3. Given the dynamics of construction scheduling, timing of construction activity is subject to change. We will make every effort to provide advance notification to area residents who will be directly affected by construction activities to help minimize the impact of the project to residents, businesses and schools. Keephills 3 May 2011 Construction Bulletin The steam blows at Keephills 3 (K3) officially ended on April 21, 2011 marking a major milestone for the 495-MW (gross) supercritical coal-fired unit. K3 is on its way to being synchronized to the grid and entering commercial operations in the third quarter of this year. In order to reach acceptable standards for the safe startup of the facility, steam blows took longer than initially anticipated. “The noise caused by the steam blows was unfortunate for our near neighbours, but we needed to do the job right to ensure the plant would operate safely” said Ralph Leriger, TransAlta, community relations manager. Steam blows are critical and prudent to commissioning in order to dislodge and remove any foreign materials from the plant’s main steam pipes between the boiler and turbine. Material in these pipes could potentially damage the turbine during startup and operation. Grid access and dispatching power In preparation for commercial operation, a number of agreements are required between the operator (TransAlta), AltaLink (transmission) and the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO – the body that manages the operation of Alberta’s real-time power grid to ensure reliability). As with all parties that engage in the buying and selling of electricity in Alberta, K3 requires network access to the grid, through AltaLink, and an agreement with the AESO. An Interconnection Agreement with AltaLink is also required to address access rights and operating procedures for the new transmission facilities connecting K3 to the AltaLink substation. Keephills 3 Providing Electricity to Albertans Keephills 3 construction is complete and commissioning of one of Canada’s newest and cleanest coal-fired facilities is well underway In March the commissioning team reconfigured the temporary piping system as the steam blows were vented to the north of the facility
Transcript of Keephills 3 Construction Bulletin - TransAlta · Steam blows are critical and prudent to...
K3 Outreach Team:Capital PowerDave Conlin,K3 Project Manager
Aaron Marlatt,Construction Manager
Dave Wruck,Construction Site Manager
Tony Smith,Permitting Lead
Jennifer LowrySenior Advisor, Public Consultation
TransAltaCraig Beattie,Project Manager
Ralph Leriger,Manager, Community Relations
Cheryl McNeil,Seinior Community Relations Advisor
How To Contact Us:If you have concerns or questions about the Keephills 3 project, please contact our toll-free K3 stakeholder hotline and email address below.
We are committed to respond to you in a timely manner.
Capital Power and TransAlta are committed to being your first and best source of information about the construction of K3. Given the dynamics of construction scheduling, timing of construction activity is subject to change. We will make every effort to provide advance notification to area residents who will be directly affected by construction activities to help minimize the impact of the project to residents, businesses and schools.
Keephills 3 May 2011 Construction Bulletin
The steam blows at Keephills 3 (K3) officially ended on April 21, 2011 marking a major milestone for the 495-MW (gross) supercritical coal-fired unit. K3 is on its way to being synchronized to the grid and entering commercial operations in the third quarter of this year.
In order to reach acceptable standards for the safe startup of the facility, steam blows took longer than initially anticipated. “The noise caused by the steam blows was unfortunate for our near neighbours, but we needed to do the job right to ensure the plant would operate safely” said Ralph Leriger, TransAlta, community relations manager.
Steam blows are critical and prudent to commissioning in order to dislodge and remove any foreign materials from the plant’s main steam pipes between the boiler and turbine. Material in these pipes could potentially damage the turbine during startup and operation.
Grid access and dispatching powerIn preparation for commercial operation, a number of agreements are required between the operator (TransAlta), AltaLink (transmission) and the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO – the body that manages the operation of Alberta’s real-time power grid to ensure reliability).
As with all parties that engage in the buying and selling of electricity in Alberta, K3 requires network access to the grid, through AltaLink, and an agreement with the AESO. An Interconnection Agreement with AltaLink is also required to address access rights and operating procedures for the new transmission facilities connecting K3 to the AltaLink substation.
Keephills 3 Providing Electricity to Albertans
Keephills 3 construction is complete and commissioning of one of Canada’s newest and cleanest coal-fired facilities is well underway
In March the commissioning team reconfigured the temporary piping system as the steam blows were vented to the north of the facility
2006 Ongoing throughout the project Public
consultation2007 RR40 and Hwy 627 intersection work Site
preparation and start of construction Gravel hauling Completion of concrete batch plant Site facilities, new entrance and new
employee parking lot open2008 Piling for turbine hall complete Start piling for water treatment plant
Employee busing begins First above-ground work – steel frame
erection starts Delivery of major equipment begins Began stack concrete pour Turbine/generator foundation complete2009 Peak activity / workforce Cooling tower complete Station transformer energized2010 January Start instrumentation, air compressor
system control Water Treatment Plant Commissioning
begins2010 February / March Boiler hydro 2010 April / May Turbine lube oil flushing2010 July / August / September Air balance tests First boiler fire2010 October / December Unit controls tuning Steam blows2011: Q2 Synchronization to the grid and combustion
testing2011 : Q3 Commissioning of Keephills 3
Personal informationTransAlta and Capital Power respect your right to privacy. Any personal information that TransAlta or Capital Power hold about you, including your name, address, phone number and email address are used for the purposes of preparing a mailing list for the K3 Construction Bulletin and/or contacting you for matters which TransAlta and Capital Power believe will be of interest to you.
If you prefer that we do not store or use your personal information in any way (for example a mailing list for the K3 Construction Bulletin) please notify us by telephone at 1-877-636-7823.
Construction ScheduleConstruction of Keephills 3 began in February 2007 and is targeted for completion in the first quarter of 2011.
Commissioning Activities Winding Down as K3 Prepares to Power Up
Commissioning activities at the facility continue to wind down and are approximately 71 per cent complete. As the project moves toward full commercial operation, teams are completing inspections, certifying equipment and running performance tests on more than 400 power plant systems. Following the completion of steam blows the temporary piping system is being removed and restored to its normal configuration attached to the steam turbine. The turbine steam admittance valves which also had to be reconfigured for the steam blows are being reassembled. The team is also conducting final control and protection checks required to synchronize the unit by initially firing the boiler with natural gas then loading it with coal.
Outstanding Safety Performance Construction of K3 began in February 2007 and was completed in December 2010. At its peak, the project was regarded as one of Canada’s top 10 biggest infrastructure projects, employing a workforce of approximately 1,400 in 2009. Despite the size, number of people and complexities, the project is a model for safety performance. By the end of December 2010 the project had surpassed 2.5 million construction hours without a lost time incident which is a notable achievement.
Traffic Returning to Normal•We continue our commitment to road safety
throughout the project.•TransAlta and Capital Power monitor employee
and contractor driving behaviours on roads and highways that access the Keephills 3 site. To help ensure a high standard of safety, residents are encouraged to phone the K3 Stakeholder Hotline at 1-877-636-7823 if they witness unsafe or aggressive driving practices.
Commitment to Continued Dialogue with the Community•Contact information
(as per How to Contact Us on front page)•Where to find information about K3 Operations o Websites o Kilowatt Connection – to be published
June 2011
A major commissioning milestone occurred in December 2010 when the plant’s burners were ignited for what’s called, “the first fire”.
K3 Raises Funds for Japan Natural DisasterThrough the construction of Genesee 3 and Keephills 3, Capital Power and TransAlta have enjoyed a positive relationship with Hitachi Ltd. who manufactured the steam turbines, generators and boilers for both units in Japan. Technical advisors from Hitachi have been working alongside Capital Power and TransAlta throughout the construction and commissioning of K3.
Howard, Shearer, President & CEO, Hitachi Canada Ltd. addresses employees at K3 during a fundraiser lunch in aid of Hitachi Project members and all the victims of the devastating earthquake and tsunami. More than $29,000 was raised for the Canadian Red Cross.
