Originally published June 14, 2006, on Chron.com at https://tinyurl.com/mk8su5uw.
By Roy Kent
Staff writer
Nestled on the northwest corner of Pasadena adjacent to the Houston Ship Channel, AES Deepwater is trying to be a good neighbor.
In the process, the company is looking to stay viable and keep some 70 employees in their jobs.
AES Deepwater formally announced its plans Wednesday to cut pollution released into the atmosphere and thus keep its doors open.
The energy company is investing about $30 million to reduce 3,500 tons of nitrogen oxide emissions. If the company failed to make the investment and with pollution controls tightening, it looked at the possibility of closing its doors.
“This is good news for the community,” said Bill Brod, financial manager for AES Deepwater. “For the last few years it was very tenuous is AES Deepwater would remain viable.”
This investment will allow the company to not only stay in business producing energy; it has spurred plans for expansion.
“We’ve looked at that 61 acre tract of land for our future,” Brod said, referring to a tract of land just to north of the current facility.
What AES Deepwater does is produce electricity, burning petroleum coke obtained from the neighboring Lyondell-Citgo Refining LP plant. The World Energy Council reports that petroleum coke, also called pet coke, is a waste byproduct of the oil refining process.
A Lyondell-Citgo representative said that plant produces about 2 million tons of the product each year, of which AES Deepwater purchases about 25 percent.
According to Jennifer Didlo, president of AES Deepwater, the facility produces enough electricity each year to supply the needs of about 140,000 homes. The new pollution control system cut emissions from the plant by at least 90 percent, Didlo said.
The new system will be the first of its kind in the nation, as no other pet coke power plants have it installed.
“It is proven technology in natural gas plants,” Didlo said.
What the company is doing is adding new hardware which will take the nitrogen oxide and convert the bulk of it into nitrogen and oxygen, Brod said.
“Your effort is applauded,” Pasadena Mayor John Manlove said. “I hope the rest of the petroleum coke plants are as environmentally sound as you are.”
The system is expected to be retrofitted to existing structures by May 2007. The retrofit will necessitate a planned shutdown for the month of February, company officials said.
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