What conservation measures has the power plant enacted?
Our power plant and chilling stations continually strive to reduce the energy we consume, thus increasing our overall energy efficiency. Some of the more significant projects completed within the past few years include the following: • Installation of variable frequency drives (VFDs) on the pumps and fans for Cooling Tower 1. In addition to providing much smoother operation and control, integrating the VFDs into the system saves us approximately $500,000 annually. • Installation of a “quench valve” system that allows us to operate with fewer steam turbines online without compromising the reliability of the plant. This project provides more than $1 million in natural gas savings annually. • Modifications and upgrades to our natural-gas-fired steam boilers. The original intent of this project was to reduce Nitrous Oxide (NOx) emissions by more than 80%. In addition to realizing these significant emissions reductions, the modifications also improved boiler efficiency by 5-10% and reduced
