A project to convert a power plant in Ecuador to run on associated gas instead of crude oil will reduce gas flaring as well as carbon emissions in the country, says Wärtsilä.
The Finnish firm has won a contract to convert the Eden Yuturi Block 15 power plant, which is owned by Petroamazonas EP, an Ecuadorian state-owned oil company. Wärtsilä says it will co-develop the project under the UN's Clean Development Mechanism (CDM).
The Eden Yuturi power plant is powered by four Wärtsilä engines and was built in 2002. Wärtsilä's multi-fuel technology will allow the plant to be fuelled by associated gas, a by-product of crude oil production.
Associated gases are produced during the crude oil extraction process and are usually flared. Converting the gas to electricity will significantly reduce carbon emissions from the power plant as well as those associated with flaring.
Wärtsilä's multifuel technology will also give the engines flexibility, allowing them to run on any combination of liquid fuel and associated gas. This will be essential as the volume of associated gas and its composition constantly change, says Wärtsilä.
Wärtsilä is aiming to register the project under the UN CDM process, a move that would make it eligible for carbon financing. If accepted, the project would become the first associated gas project in South America to be successfully registered under the CDM.
The World Bank-led Gas Flaring Reduction Partnership estimates that globally around 150 billion cubic metres of gas are flared or vented every year, causing some 400 million tons of carbon dioxide in annual emissions.
The avoidance of associated gas flaring is an established project category under the CDM process.
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