Sheerness power station
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Sheerness power station is an operating power station of at least 800-megawatts (MW) in Sunnynook, Special Area No. 3, Alberta, Canada with multiple units, some of which are not currently operating.
Location
Table 1: Project-level location details
| Plant name | Location | Coordinates (WGS 84) |
|---|---|---|
| Sheerness power station | Sunnynook, Special Area No. 3, Alberta, Canada | 51.4427177, -111.7903304 (exact) |
The map below shows the exact location of the power station.
Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):
- Unit 1, Unit 2: 51.4427177, -111.7903304
- Unit 1, Unit 2: 51.44272, -111.79
Project Details
Table 2: Unit-level details
| Unit name | Status | Fuel(s) | Capacity (MW) | Technology | CHP | Start year | Retired year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unit 1 | retired | coal - subbituminous | 390 | subcritical | – | 1986 | 2021 |
| Unit 1 | operating[1][2] | gas[2] | 400[2] | steam turbine[3][4] | not found | 2021[5] | – |
| Unit 2 | retired | coal - subbituminous | 390 | subcritical | – | 1990 | 2021 |
| Unit 2 | operating[1][2] | gas[2] | 400[2] | steam turbine[3][4] | not found | 2021[5] | – |
CHP is an abbreviation for Combined Heat and Power. It is a technology that produces electricity and thermal energy at high efficiencies. Coal units track this information in the Captive Use section when known.
Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details
| Unit name | Owner | Parent | Operator |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unit 1 | Heartland Generation Ltd [100.0%] | – | – |
| Unit 1 | Heartland Generation [50%]; TransAlta Corporation [25%]; Other [25%][6][2] | Energy Capital Partners [100.0%]; TransAlta Corporation [100.0%]; Other [100.0%] | Heartland Generation[7] |
| Unit 2 | Heartland Generation Ltd [100.0%] | – | – |
| Unit 2 | Heartland Generation [50%]; TransAlta Corporation [25%]; Other [25%][6][2] | Energy Capital Partners [100.0%]; TransAlta Corporation [100.0%]; Other [100.0%] | Heartland Generation[7] |
Background
The power plant’s two generating units produce 5.5 million megawatt-hours of energy annually. Each unit consists of one boiler, a turbine and a generator.
The Sheerness cooling pond, which is filled from the Red Deer River, which is also the main source of water for the town of Hanna and surrounding communities, irrigation water for farmers, and a recreation area.
Sheerness is fueled by coal from the nearby Sheerness coal mine.[8]
In February 2019 ATCO applied to the Alberta Utilities Commission to convert the plant to run on gas by 2020.[9][10]
In September 2019 ATCO sold Sheerness power station as well as Battle River power station to Heartland Generation Ltd., as subsidiary of American company Energy Capital Partners.[11]
On a November 2020 call with TransAlta shareholders the President of TransAlta Renewables John Kousinioris said that the timeline for converting the station to run on gas was 2021 or possibly later.[12]
The conversion of Sheerness Unit 1 to gas was completed in early 2021, and the unit returned to service on March 21, 2021. The conversion of Unit 2 to gas was completed in July 2021.[13]
TransAlta pays for pro-coal research by University of Alberta
In July 2018 it was reported that TransAlta paid the University of Alberta $54,000 in 2015 to hand-pick a professor to generate pro-coal research and talking points to be used in lobbying government officials.[14]
Articles and Resources
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 https://web.archive.org/web/20210801102421/https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/transalta-reports-strong-first-quarter-2021-results-led-by-exceptional-performance-at-alberta-hydro-301290676.html. Archived from the original on 01 August 2021.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|archive-date=(help); Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 https://web.archive.org/web/20221003060827/https://transalta.com/about-us/our-operations/facilities/sheerness/. Archived from the original on 03 October 2022.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|archive-date=(help); Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 3.0 3.1 https://www.power-technology.com/marketdata/sheerness-gas-power-generating-station-unit-ii-canada/.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 4.0 4.1 https://web.archive.org/web/20221128210726/https://www.heartlandgeneration.com/operations. Archived from the original on 28 November 2022.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 5.0 5.1 https://stockhouse.com/news/press-releases/2021/11/09/transalta-reports-exceptional-third-quarter-2021-results-and-increases-annual.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 6.0 6.1 https://web.archive.org/web/20240125005516/https://www.heartlandgeneration.com/. Archived from the original on 25 January 2024.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 7.0 7.1 https://web.archive.org/web/20220529115220/https://www.transalta.com/plants-operation/sheerness/. Archived from the original on 29 May 2022.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ "Sheerness" TransAlta Company Website, accessed April 30, 2010.
- ↑ ATCO applies to convert Sheerness to natural gas, Drumheller Mail, Feb. 13, 2019
- ↑ Coal-to-Gas Conversion of Sheerness Power Plant Units 1 and 2, Alberta Utilities Commission, Mar 11, 2019
- ↑ Canadian Utilities sells Canadian generation business, World Coal, Oct. 1, 2019
- ↑ TransAlta Corp (TAC) Q3 2020 Earnings Call Transcript, The Motley Fool, Nov. 5, 2020
- ↑ TransAlta Reports Exceptional Third Quarter 2021 Results and Increases Annual Guidance, Stockhouse, Nov. 9, 2021
- ↑ How TransAlta used a university-sanctioned research project to lobby for the coal industry, CBC, Jul. 24, 2018
Additional data
To access additional data, including interactive maps of the power stations, downloadable datases, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker and the Global Oil and Gas Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.
