PROJECT PROFILE
Transcription
PROJECT PROFILE
PROJECT P R O FIL E SHELL CANADA LIMITED is mixed with a thinner and pumped 470 kilometres, through the Corridor Pipeline, to the upgrader at Scotford, near Edmonton. TIM DRISCOLL HEAD ELECTRICAL ENGINEER, SHELL CANADA The fuel Canadians count on to keep the country moving makes many miles in its journey from the oil sands to the gas pumps. “It all starts at the Muskeg River Mine north of Fort McMurray, Alberta,” says Tim Driscoll, Head Electrical Engineer, Shell Canada. “Trucks and shovels mine the oil and sand mixture from just below the surface. Some of the biggest trucks in the world – the 400 tonne size – haul the oil sand to the crushing stations where it is conveyed to huge rotating bins, broken into small chunks, then using heat, water and a solvent, these chunks are further processed into bitumen, a very heavy oil. Daily, over 150,000 barrels of clean bitumen, are produced. Then, the bitumen At Scotford, a hydro cracking process breaks down the heavy oil molecules to form a synthetic crude, which is then refined into gasoline and other finished products. The hydro cracking process produces more barrels of crude out than the bitumen input, and does not produce the waste product of coke.” The completed project is expected to produce about 10% of Canada’s crude oil needs. Electricity is a critical component in the extraction plant, upgrader and refinery modification projects at the Scotford site. “We’ve used Alcan NUAL conductor in all of these oil sands projects,” says Driscoll. “NUAL aluminum alloy is an acceptable and sometimes the preferred choice for wire and cable products in various electrical applications. NUAL is Alcan’s trade name for their 8000 series aluminum alloy conductor material. 8000 series aluminum alloy conductor is built into our corporate standards and we push to use it on projects where it provides an economic advantage. Our base standards include 8000 series alloy as being acceptable for motor and other feeders down to a certain size and we use it at different voltages.” “We reviewed the Alcan testing results,” explains Driscoll. “We ran trials with aluminum alloy for feeders in some of our gas plants, gradually building up corporate knowledge of the product and our confidence that there weren’t any problems. We found how easy it was to pull and install, where we realized additional cost savings. 8000 series aluminum was gradually embedded into our base standards.” Driscoll adds, “Even though 8000 series aluminum is less expensive, we look at more than just the purchase cost. Several other factors need to be considered such as termination type and preparation, and tray considerations like cable weight and size. Overall, it is a good economic choice considering the combination of cost savings and ease of installation.” Oil Sands Project, Muskeg River Plant grounded in service wired to innovate. TM 2700 Matheson Blvd. E., East Tower, Suite 602, Mississauga, Ontario L4W 5H7 Telephone: (905) 206-6900 • Fax: (905) 206-6907 829 06/05