1. Tidal: Nova Scotia Power has partnered with Irish firm OpenHydro to explore a new source of tidal energy for Nova Scotia. As part of a test project that will help to determine the feasibility of harnessing tidal energy on a commercial scale, NS Power has deployed a 10-metre, 1MW in-stream tidal turbine in the Minas Passage of the Bay of Fundy – home to the world’s most powerful tides.

NS Power's OpenHydro turbine continues to operate in the Minas Passage. The turbine will be recovered this fall for a complete engineering analysis; this will provide valuable technical information around any damage sustained over the past year. The recovery will be a major milestone in understanding how turbines operate in the unique Bay of Fundy environment. OpenHydro will review its design and redeploy in 2011.

NS Power chose OpenHydro’s design because it is simple and robust – ideal for the punishing conditions of the Bay of Fundy. Designed to generate electricity in a manner that is both reliable and predictable, the turbine operates each day with the flow of the tides: it spins in one direction at high tide and reverses as the tides flow back out to sea. This form of generation is more predictable than other forms of renewable energy like wind power, where it can be difficult to predict when turbines will operate at maximum capacity.

The turbine is self-lubricating and operates without oils, grease and other fluids which could impact the sensitive marine environment. The turbine’s open-centre design allows sea life to freely pass through the device, a feature that should ensure minimal impact on its surrounding environment.

Now deployed, the turbine will be monitored by NS Power and OpenHydro for up to two years to ensure that it can both withstand the punishing conditions of the Bay of Fundy and operate in harmony with its surrounding environment. The turbine is currently sitting on the ocean floor, invisible from the ocean’s surface. Even at low tide, the turbine cannot be seen.

In 2010, two additional turbines will be deployed in the Bay of Fundy by Clean Current from British Columbia and Minas Basin Pulp and Power of Hants East. These companies, along with NS Power, are all members of the Fundy Ocean Research Centre for Energy (FORCE) which is in the process of constructing a station that will allow the turbines to be connected to the electrical grid. The station will also include a research laboratory to examine the data collected from the test turbines in the hope of determining how best to harness energy from the Bay of Fundy in the future.

Visit www.fundyforce.ca/news/view/34 for updates and additional information.

2. LNG Tanks: Canaport LNG is a state-of-the-art liquefied natural gas (LNG) receiving and regasification terminal in Saint John, New Brunswick – the first in Canada. Supplying natural gas to Canadian and American markets, Canaport LNG has a maximum send-out capacity of 1.2 billion cubic feet (BCF) or 28 million cubic metres of natural gas per day.

Visit www.canaportlng.com for updates and additional information.

3. Onshore Drill Rig: Corridor Resources Inc. is a junior resource company based in Nova Scotia engaged in the exploration, development and production for petroleum and natural gas onshore in New Brunswick.

Visit www.corridor.ca for additional information.

4. Home: Heating Your Home with Natural Gas heating systems not only provide consistent warmth, they also offer a wide variety of options so you can be sure to get the right system that best serves the size, age, style and location of your home. The most popular methods of heating with natural gas are furnaces, boilers, and water heaters.
Natural gas furnaces deliver even, comfortable heat and are available in a number of sizes and models. ENERGY STAR® models offer over 90% efficiency rating, giving you the most from your heating dollar.
Natural gas boilers are a great alternative for space, water and combination heating for in-floor or perimeter radiant heating systems. Available in many sizes, input rates and efficiencies, boilers are a safe, convenient and reliable option.
Natural gas water heaters provide all the hot water for your family's needs when you need it, even during a power outage. Plus natural gas heats your water three times as fast as an electric unit. Next to space heating, water heating is the second largest portion of energy use in your home so it's important that you choose an efficient, clean and cost-effective water heater - natural gas.

Visit www.heritagegas.com/residential/natural-gas-around-your-home.html for additional information.

5. Natural Gas Storage: The Alton Natural Gas Storage Project involves the construction and operation of a natural gas storage facility in Nova Scotia. The facility will consist of several solution-mined caverns to be brined out of a large, structurally stable salt formation.
Salt cavern storage facilities have several advantages over the much more common depleted reservoir facilities. Operating costs and maintenance tends to be lower. Requirements for cushion gas, gas that is injected into the facility to maintain operational pressures, also tends to be lower. Most interestingly, salt cavern facilities typically have greater injection/withdrawal rates than do depleted reservoirs, which typically turn over their gas once per year. It is possible that Alton would be able to cycle its inventory four times per year. This sort of performance has benefits in more volatile markets.
Currently there are no underground gas storage facilities north of Boston along the Maritimes and Northeast Pipeline route, which runs from Nova Scotia to the northeastern United States.

Visit www.altongas.com for additional information.

6. Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline (M&NP) Lateral Pipeline: In December 1999, a major energy project placed Atlantic Canada and the Northeastern United States at the beginning of North America's interstate pipeline network, with close proximity to significant new supplies of natural gas. Known as Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline, this historic project has introduced natural gas - a cleaner burning, efficient and cost competitive energy source - to areas in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Maine and the Northeast U.S. that previously did not have access to natural gas.
Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline (M&NP) is a 1400-kilometre transmission pipeline system built to transport natural gas from developments offshore Nova Scotia to markets in Atlantic Canada and the northeastern United States. A joint venture of Spectra Energy (77.53%), Emera Inc. (12.92%), and ExxonMobil (9.55%), M&NP is headquartered in Halifax, Nova Scotia and operates an additional business office in Waltham, Massachusetts.
The M&NP system consists of an approximately 30"/24" diameter underground mainline running from Goldboro, Nova Scotia through Nova Scotia and New Brunswick to the Canadian - U.S. border near Baileyville, Maine. The pipeline continues through Maine and New Hampshire into Massachusetts where it connects with the existing North American pipeline grid at Dracut, Massachusetts. The pipeline also extends from Methuen, Massachusetts to Beverly, Massachusetts.
Since our beginnings in 1999, our system has added many market delivery points in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts.

Visit www.mnpp.com/canada/ for additional information.

7. M&NP Main Pipeline: The smaller lateral pipelines spur off the larger mainline to serve local communities with Natural gas which has become one of the most important sources of energy in Canada and the United States. It is a versatile, cost effective, safe and environmentally responsible alternative to other fuels. According to the Canadian Gas Association, almost six million homes and businesses in Canada use natural gas for heating, cooking and other applications. In the commercial and institutional sector, natural gas is used to heat hospitals, hotels, schools, shopping centers and apartment buildings. Industry also uses natural gas for heating, heat treating, electric generation and a variety of industrial processes.
Natural gas is a light form of fossil fuel. It is derived from hydrocarbons produced thousands of years ago when plant and animal materials were buried beneath layers of soil and rock. Over time, heat and pressure combined to transform this mass into fossil fuels.
To produce what is known as "sales quality gas", raw gas is sent to a processing plant where ethane, propane, butane and other hydrocarbons are removed. Once processed, natural gas consists predominantly of methane, the lightest hydrocarbon component of natural gas. In fact, natural gas is lighter than air. If released, it will rise and disperse into the atmosphere, rather than pool as do other fuels.
Natural gas is the cleanest and most efficient fossil fuel. When natural gas is burned, virtually no atmospheric emissions of sulfur dioxide or small particulate matter are released and the amount of nitrogen oxide produced is significantly less than other fuels. Increased use of natural gas can help address environmental concerns by reducing air emissions - making natural gas the environmental fuel of choice.

Visit www.mnpp.com/canada/faq for more information and FAQS.

8. Pulp & Paper Plant: The NewPage Port Hawkesbury mill is located on the southwestern end of Cape Breton Island on the north shore of the Strait of Canso, a body of water that separates Cape Breton Island from mainland Nova Scotia. A causeway provides highway and rail access to Cape Breton.
In the early 1620s, Scottish settlers named Nova Scotia after their homeland. Many agree that the two share a similar scenic geography. Rolling hills, lakes and streams, lush woodlands and countless inlets and coves all contribute to its natural beauty. These attributes, along with its temperate northern climate and other attractions, explain why Cape Breton ranks as a top-tier destination and vacation island.

Visit www.newpagecorp.com/wps/portal for additional information.

9. Fractionation Plant: Natural gas liquids are a by-product of the processing that occurs at the Goldboro Plant. These liquids are separated and transported via a buried pipeline to Point Tupper, near Port Hawkesbury on Cape Breton Island for fractionation. The liquids are separated into propane, butane and condensate. Daily, Point Tupper can produce enough propane to fill 63,000 20-pound barbecue tanks, enough butane to fill 11 million lighters, and enough condensate to produce all the gasoline needed for a car to drive around the world 515 times. The fractionation plant operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Visit www.soep.com/cgi-bin/getpage for additional information.

10. Goldboro Gas Plant: The Goldboro Gas Plant is located in Guysborough County, Nova Scotia and operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Visit www.soep.com/cgi-bin/getpage for additional information.

11. Metering Station: Natural gas from the Sable Offshore energy Project enters Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline’s main pipeline for distribution in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and into the US.

Visit www.mnpp.com/canada for additional information.

12. Power Generating Station: The Tufts Cove Generating Station consists of three oil-fired units commissioned in the 1960s and 1970s as well as two natural gas fired combustion turbines commissioned in 2003 and 2004.
The three Tufts Cove oil-fired units were converted to also burn natural gas in 1999-2000. The burning of natural gas greatly reduces the emissions of SO2.
Electrostatic precipitators have been installed in the stacks at Tufts Cove. The equipment removes particulate matter and prevents it from rising through the stacks into the air and is designed to be 92 efficient for oil burning.
NSPI is working to upgrade the combustion turbines by installing two heat recovery boilers, a single condensing steam turbine generator (Tufts Cove Unit 6) and associated balance of plant to create a combined cycle generating station. This is a project that will increase generating capacity with minimal addition to air emissions.

Visit www.nspower.ca/en/home/environment/reportsandmetrics/archived/thermal.aspx for additional information.

13. M&NP Metering Station: Metering stations along the Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline compress natural gas to reduce its volume and push it through the pipe, metering stations are placed periodically along natural gas pipelines. These stations allow pipeline companies to monitor and manage the natural gas in their pipes. Essentially, these metering stations measure the flow of gas along the pipeline, and allow pipeline companies to 'track' natural gas as it flows along the pipeline. These metering stations employ specialized meters to measure the natural gas as it flows through the pipeline, without impeding its movement.

Visit www.mnpp.com/canada for additional information.

14. Office Building: In addition to office buildings, Heritage Gas works with small and large businesses alike in industries such as manufacturing, processing, hospitality, health care, schools, municipalities and retail, all of whom are enjoying the benefits of natural gas as their primary energy source. Natural gas options include High efficiency ENERGY STAR® qualified furnaces & boilers; Water heaters; Unit heaters and radiant heaters; Dehumidification; Manufacturing and processing equipment; Absorption chillers; Generators; Commercial cooking equipment; and Hospitality equipment such as clothes dryers & ironing equipment.

For additional information visit Heritage Gas at www.heritagegas.com.

15. Hospital: In addition to hospitals, Heritage Gas works with government buidlings and complexes along with small and large businesses alike in industries such as manufacturing, processing, hospitality, health care, schools, municipalities and retail, all of whom are enjoying the benefits of natural gas as their primary energy source. Natural gas options include High efficiency ENERGY STAR® qualified furnaces & boilers; Water heaters; Unit heaters and radiant heaters; Dehumidification; Manufacturing and processing equipment; Absorption chillers; Generators; Commercial cooking equipment; and Hospitality equipment such as clothes dryers & ironing equipment.

For additional information visit Heritage Gas at www.heritagegas.com.

16. Refinery: The Imperial Oil Refinery began production in 1918 to meet the demands of the First World War. Since then, it has grown continuously, now occupying approximately 260 hectares (650 acres). It has a processing capacity of up to 89,000 barrels of crude oil a day, manufacturing 52 different products. Most of these products are sold to customers in the Atlantic provinces and Eastern Quebec through a network of agents and distributors.
Employees: About 200
Daily capacity: up to 89,000 barrels of crude oil
Products: Unleaded gasoline, jet fuel, stove oil, furnace fuel, diesel, ships' fuel, propane, butane, sulphur, heavy fuel oil, asphalt, heptene and octene
Facilities: Crude distillation, powerformer, catalytic cracking, hydrofiners, heptene and octene plants, asphalt plant, storage, blending and distribution, utilities complex and marine terminal operation.

Visit www.imperialoil.ca/Canada-English/Thisis/Operations/TI_O_DartmouthRefinery.asp for additional information.

17. Supply Vessel: An offshore supply vessel (often abbreviated as OSV) is a ship specially designed to supply offshore oil or gas platforms. These ships range from 65 to 350 feet in length and accomplish a variety of tasks. The primary function for most of these vessels is transportation of goods and personnel from ports like Halifax to and from offshore oil platforms and other offshore structures similar to those off Nova Scotia's coast.
Modern Offshore Supply Vessels, similar to the one being built at the Halifax Shipyards for Encana's Deep Panuke project are equipped with Class 1 or Class 2 Dynamic Positioning Systems allowing them to stay in one position for an indefinite period of time.
The state-of-the-art Offshore Supply Vessel contract was announced on September 21, 2009 in conjunction with Halifax Shipyard as they celebrated 120 years of continuous shipbuilding. The men and women of the shipyard were joined by Premier Dexter, who marked the milestone with the cutting of steel for a new state-of-the-art offshore supply vessel to serve Encana's Deep Panuke project off the coast of Sable Island.
The building and commissioning of the new vessel will employ 180 shipyard workers at the project's peak and will provide 425,000 person hours of employment. The building of the new ship will generate an estimated payroll of $20 million and will result in about $14 million in purchases of goods and services from approximately 50 Nova Scotian suppliers.
Atlantic Towing will operate the new vessel's long-term contract with Encana. In serving the Deep Panuke platform, the vessel will provide over 50,000 person hours of work per year for Atlantic Towing, employing 22 crew members in Nova Scotia. Delivery of the offshore supply vessel is forecasted for the fourth quarter of 2010.
The following two companies operate offshore supply vessels for Nova Scotia's offshore oil & gas industry:

Atlantic Towing: http://atlantictowing.com/atlantic-towing-marine-services-offshore-support.aspx

Secunda Marine: http://secunda.com

18. Deep Panuke Production Platform: The Deep Panuke Production Field Centre involves the installation of facilities required to produce and process natural gas from the Deep Panuke field, approximately 250 kilometers southeast of Halifax, Nova Scotia on the Scotian Shelf. Natural gas from Deep Panuke will be processed offshore and transported, via subsea pipeline, to Goldboro, Nova Scotia for further transport to market via the Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline. First gas is expected from Deep Panuke in 2011.

19. Sable Offshore Energy Project: The Sable Offshore Energy Project is divided into two 'tiers' of offshore development. The first tier was completed in December 1999 and involved the development of the Thebaud, North Triumph, and Venture fields, as well as the construction of three offshore platforms, an onshore gas plant and an onshore fractionation plant. Gas production commenced on December 31, 1999. Alma, the first Tier II platform came in late 2003 while production from South Venture, the second field began late in 2004.

For more information on the Sable Offshore Energy Project, visit ExxonMobil Sable Offshore Energy Project at www.soep.com/cgi-bin/getpage.

20. Sable Subsea Pipeline: The Sable Offshore Energy Project’s (SOEP) subsea pipeline delivers natural gas from the offshore SOEP fields to the onshore Gas Plant. The Sable Project is the largest construction project ever undertaken in Nova Scotia. We’re proud of what we’ve accomplished. We’ve established an infrastructure that will be the basis of our production efforts for the future. Those efforts are changing the face of the Nova Scotia economy, and providing an alternative energy resource to consumers throughout the Maritimes and the Eastern United States.
For updates and additional information, visit www.soep.com/cgi-bin/getpage.
21. Deep Panuke Subsea Pipeline: The natural gas export pipeline for Encana’s Deep Panuke project stretches about 175 kilometres from the project’s field centre offshore to landfall at Goldboro. NS. The 22-inch diameter pipe arrived in Nova Scotia in 2009 with each 12-metre section covered in a concrete coating at a Shaw & Shaw plant in Sheet Harbour, NS. The concrete coated pipe was loaded for installation in the field beginning in July 2009. By the end of 2009, the installation and trenching of the pipe offshore was completed. Natural gas from Deep Panuke will be shipped to market via this pipeline.

For general information on the Deep Panuke project, please contact Encana's East Coast Operations team at (902) 422-4500 or visit www.encana.com/deeppanuke for updates. Or send an email to dpinfo@encana.com. Sign-up to be added to the Deep Panuke Project Newsletter email distribution list.
22. Annapolis Tidal Power Facility: Nova Scotia Power owns and operates one of just three tidal power plants in the world and the only one in the western hemisphere. The Annapolis Tidal Power Plant came online in 1984. It has a capacity of 20 megawatts and a daily output of roughly 80-100 megawatt hours, depending on the tides.

Until recently, the most common form of tidal power technology was to build a large dam called a barrage across a river or outcropping of land. The dam funneled water into the tidal generating plant and through a large turbine as it flowed in and out with the tide.

Today, engineers are developing tidal technology that does not require any dams or head ponds. New technologies include offshore floating tidal turbines and turbines that are anchored to the ocean floor. The turbines, that can resemble wind turbines, take advantage of natural tidal flows. A recent study by the Electric Power Research Institute has singled out the Bay of Fundy as one of the best spots on the planet to deploy this new technology.

For updates and additional information, visit www.nspower.ca/en/home/environment/renewableenergy/tidal/annapolis.aspx.

If you have additional information relevant to this page please send it to info@energyconsultant.ca noting that it will be reviewed for content prior to any posting, thank you!
We acknowledge Encana, the Canada Offshore Nova Scotia Petroleum Board (CNSOPB) and the NS Department of Energy for contributing information to this page.
Their websites are www.encana.com, http://www.cnsopb.ns.ca and www.gov.ns.ca/energy/AbsPage.aspx