Natural gas is a non-renewable energy source. Meaning once it’s burned it’s gone for good. Compared to coal, it produces about 50% less emissions.
Natural gas generates power by using the heat of combustion. There are several ways we can use this heat to make power:
Simple cycle gas turbines use heat from burning natural gas to turn a turbine to create power. This method is best when power use is at its peak, and for load following capability with renewables.
Combined cycle gas plants reuse their own exhaust heat to make steam. This steam is used to turn another turbine to create additional power. Combined cycle plants are about 15% more efficient.
Reciprocating Internal Combustion Engines (RICE) burn fuel to push a piston, which turns motion into power. RICE units generally have smaller capacity than turbines but offer better operational flexibility. This means they can ramp up or down as needed even quicker than a gas turbine. RICE facilities take less time to build and aren’t as susceptible to performance decreases during seasonal extremes.
Reliability
Gas generation is a highly reliable source of power that is readily available in Saskatchewan.
Cost
It’s an inexpensive way to provide power to the province. But with changing federal regulations natural gas plants are becoming more expensive.
Emissions
Natural gas moderately impacts the environment. It produces less than half of the emissions of coal.
Now
Natural gas generation (excluding cogeneration) makes up about 42% of our total generating capacity.
Future
We’re building the Aspen Power Station near Lanigan. It’ll be a 370-megawatt combined cycle natural gas facility.
Because of its emissions, natural gas only be a temporary bridge to reaching net zero GHG emissions from the power grid. We’ll need a different source of back up power to support non-emitting sources like wind and solar to reach net zero.
Watch the video below to learn more about Natural Gas.
