Great Falls sewage plant to generate electricity – Project makes sense

A co-generation project that will convert gases produced during sewage treatment into electricity is in Great Falls’ future.

The proposal received the go-ahead Tuesday night when city commissioners unanimously authorized issuance of $5 million in revenue bonds to finance co-generation at the Wastewater Treatment Plant and extend sewer service to the Agri-Business Park, site of the International Malting Co. plant, which is scheduled to open in the spring.

According to a feasibility study by the Houston-based Veolia Water North America, the company that contracts to operate the city’s Wastewater Treatment Plant, the $2,450,000 co-generation project will pay for itself over the 20-year life of the bonds.

By PAULA WILMOT
Tribune Staff Writer

Full Story: http://www.greatfallstribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050106/NEWS01/501060301/1002

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Electricity co-generation project makes sense

http://www.greatfallstribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050107/OPINION01/501070304/1014/OPINION

"Project expected to pay for itself," said the headline.

While paying for themselves isn’t necessarily make-or-break for most things in life, neither is it a bad idea — for personal investment or for business and for government spending.

In this case, the headline on Thursday’s front page applied to a plan to install an electricity co-generation system at the city’s new Wastewater Treatment Plant.

At a marathon meeting Tuesday night, city commissioners authorized issuance of $5 million in revenue bonds to convert methane gas from the treatment process into electricity. A key component of the overall project will be extending sewer service to the Agri-Business Park north of town, site of the International Malting Co. plant.

According to city officials, the project will pay off in at least three different ways: new revenue from sewer-service charges paid by IMC and, eventually, other industries in the Agri-Business Park; savings in natural gas costs for heating the sewer-treatment plant; and savings in electricity costs for the city.

As we said last year when the proposal surfaced, we admit to being suckers for things that save money for taxpayers and use unwanted materials in the process.

In that context, there’s not much to dislike in the project.

If there’s a caveat, it might be that this is the same government entity that said the Wave Rider feature at Mitchell Pool and the new parking garage downtown would pay for themselves.

Eventually they probably will, and in the meantime they fall in the "amenities" category — things that make life in Great Falls better for all who use them.

It’s also worth noting that those two city investments both are subject to market fluctuations — weather in the case of the Wave Rider, and downtown business activity in the case of the garage.

The Wastewater Treatment Plant is established, and its market is … well, not to put too fine a point on it, there will be a need for sewage treatment and plenty of raw material for co-generation as long as there are people in Great Falls.

In fact, when IMC comes online this spring, it will increase the flow of those raw materials by 11 to 13 percent.

In the co-gen system, an internal-combustion generator will run on methane and other digester gases. System exhaust will heat the building as well as water for the digester.

And it’s not as if the city of Great Falls will be reinventing the wheel.

The feasibility study was done by the huge, Houston-based company that operates the treatment plant and has installed co-generation systems elsewhere.

And Billings has operated one for 20 years, saving $60,000 a year or more for the city.

Great Falls officials said a primary reason for taking the step is to reduce dependence on outside utilities, but there’s an ecological component too.

"Anytime you can take an existing natural resource like this and convert it to energy, it’s a step in the right direction," said Coleen Balzarini, fiscal services director.

We agree.