Aecon has won two energy contracts from Union Gas and Spectra Energy in Canada.A $250M contract has been awarded to Aecon by Union Gas Limited for work on its Dawn-Parkway expansion project in Ontario, Canada. The scope of the work includes the construction of natural gas compressor facilities at its Bright, Dawn and Lobo compressor station locations.Construction work has commenced and is expected to be complete by the fourth quarter of 2017.The second contract is a four-year Master Service Agreement (MSA) from Spectra Energy for pipelines facilities in Western Canada.The MSA contract involves construction work at Spectra’s compressor stations and related labour on pipeline facilities on the natural gas transmission system in British Columbia. Construction work is already underway.Aecon’s energy executive vice president Mark Scherer said: “Building partnerships and alliances forms the backbone of our business, and we look forward to working on these essential programs as we continue our strategic alliance with Union Gas and Spectra Energy in both Eastern and Western Canada.”
US-based infrastructure firm AECOM has secured an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for the $700M Alliant Energy Riverside Energy Center expansion project in Wisconsin, US.AECOM will be responsible for the design, supply, install and start-up of a 2x1 gas-fired combined cycle. The power plant will use gas-fired combustion turbine technology to produce about 700MW of electricity for Alliant Energy customers in Wisconsin. AECOM’s chairman and CEO Michael Burke said: “We’re pleased to build the next-generation power plant that will enable Alliant Energy to keep delivering efficient and cost effective energy to thousands of customers and businesses.“This project taps an experienced, talented team unrivaled in our industry for delivering energy efficient power generation sites across the country.”The project is expected to be complete by early-2020.
SNC-Lavalin in joint venture with Aecon Group has secured two contracts from Ontario Power Generation (OPG) for nuclear services at the Darlington Nuclear Generating Station in Ontario, Canada.Under the first contract worth $265M, the JV will be responsible for the refurbishment of all four 935MW steam turbine generators at the station, along with the generators’ overhauls and moisture separator re-heaters, condenser repairs and implementation of new controls systems.Work has already started and is expected to be complete in 2025.According to the second contract, valued at $127M, the JV will provide engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services for the Retube Waste Processing Building. The work, shared equally between the two companies, is anticipated to be completed in 2017.SNC-Lavalin’s chief nuclear officer and executive vice president of nuclear Preston Swafford said: “We are pleased to work closely with OPG to extend the life of one of Canada’s largest nuclear generating stations.“Our nuclear capabilities ensure that the Candu nuclear reactors will continue to provide safe, reliable, affordable and CO2-free energy to Ontario for up to another 30 years.”
Dominion subsidiary Dominion Virginia Power has started work on its 1,588MW Greensville County Power Station in Virginia, USA.Construction on the new $1.3bn facility follows the plant's air permit approval by the Virginia Air Pollution Control Board. According to the company, the air permit, issued on June 17, was the last regulatory hurdle the power plant had to clear before proceeding. Dominion's Generation Group CEO Paul Koonce said: "This is terrific news for Dominion, its customers, the Commonwealth, Greensville County and all of Southside Virginia."We are excited about the task ahead and are looking forward to getting this state-of-the art power station operating and providing energy to more than 400,000 customers by 2019."The new plant will be the company's second major generation project in Southside, being the first Brunswick County Power Station, which started generating electricity in April.
EDF Energies Nouvelles subsidiary EDF EN Canada and MD1 Wind have dedicated the 74MW Mont Rothery wind project in Quebec, Canada.The project includes 37 wind turbines, which will generate clean electricity to meet the needs of about 15,000 Quebec homes. The $175M wind farm has created over 200 jobs during the peak construction period and approximately seven permanent operation and maintenance jobs.Construction on the project started in October 2014 and reached commercial operation in December 2015.EDF EN Canada’s director of generation Alex Couture said: “In addition to the $11M of local economic impact generated by the project during construction, the two MRCs concerned by the project and the city of Murdochville will share a total contribution of over $4M during the operational phase.”* For more information on the Canada construction market, visit the Construction Intelligence Center Report Store.
LACC, the joint venture between Axiall Corporation and Lotte Chemical, has started construction on a $3bn project to build an ethane cracker facility in Louisiana, USA.The cracker facility, to be located adjacent to Axiall’s existing Lake Charles complex, is expected to produce 1M tonnes of ethylene annually. Lotte Chemical will also build an adjacent plant to produce 700,000t of ethylene glycol (EG) annually. The facilities are expected to create over 200 new direct jobs and more than 1,800 indirect jobs in the region. Further, about 2,000 temporary construction jobs are expected to be created during construction work.Lotte Chemical’s president and CEO Soo Young Huh said: “Among Korean petrochemical companies, Lotte Chemical is the first to locate a project in the United States; as such, this project represents a significant investment by Lotte Chemical.”Axiall’s president and CEO Tim Mann said: “For Axiall this commitment marks the next phase of our continued investment in the Lake Charles area. Our construction site is just west of our largest chemicals plant, where we have operated for nearly 70 years.”
Spectra Energy subsidiary Valley Crossing Pipeline has secured a contract from the Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE) to build the $1.5bn Nueces-to-Brownsville natural gas pipeline.The 168-mile intrastate natural gas pipeline project will be used to transport natural gas — starting in 2018 — to meet Mexico's growing power generation needs.Under the contract, Valley Crossing will build and operate a header system of more than 5bn cb ft per day near the Agua Dulce Hub in Nueces County, Texas, as well as a 2.6bn cb ft per day pipeline originating at that header and extending to Brownsville, Texas. There, the pipeline will connect with the Sur de Texas-Tuxpan pipeline, which will extend into Mexico.Spectra Energy’s president of US Transmission and Storage Bill Yardley said: "Spectra Energy is pleased to have secured the bid to build and operate this critical infrastructure, which will provide clean-burning and reliable natural gas to support Mexico as its electric generators shift away from fuel oil and imported LNG."Successfully securing this project adds to our already-strong asset portfolio, connects us to another key demand-pull market, and brings us closer to our goal of securing $35bn in capital expansion projects by the end of this decade, with approximately $20bn either in execution or in service since 2013."
The Infraestructura Marina del Golfo (IMG) joint venture has secured a contract to design and build a $2.1bn natural gas pipeline in Mexico.Under the 25-year contract — awarded by the Comision Federal de Electricidad (CFE) — the JV between Infraestructura Energética Nova (IEnova) and TransCanada will build, own and operate an approximately 800km gas pipeline.IMG will be responsible for implementing the project, including permitting, acquiring land and rights of way, engineering, procurement, construction, financing, operation and maintenance. The 42-inch diameter ‘Sur de Texas-Tuxpan’ pipeline will have a daily capacity of 2.6bn cb ft. The pipeline will be used to transport natural gas from a point near Brownsville, Texas, to Tuxpan, Veracruz, and will provide natural gas to new and existing CFE power plants that currently use fuel oil. TransCanada’s president and CEO Russ Girling said: "We are extremely pleased to further our growth plans in Mexico with one of the most important natural gas infrastructure projects for that country's future."This new project brings our footprint of existing assets and projects in development in Mexico to more than $5bn, all underpinned by 25-year agreements with Mexico's state power company."The pipeline is expected to be operational in late 2018.
Granite Construction subsidiary Kenny Construction has won four sewer renewal contracts worth $119M from the City of Chicago.Under the contracts, Kenny will be responsible for the cured-in-place pipe (CIPP) lining, and CIPP structure lining for two years with an option to extend by one year.The contracts are part of a multi-year programme to replace Chicago’s aging brick sewers, financed by the City of Chicago and Illinois Environmental Protection Agency. Granite Construction said that CIPP lining and structure lining extends the life of hydraulically adequate sewers at lower cost than excavating and replacing sewers in the streets, and is less disruptive to vehicular and pedestrian traffic during construction.Construction is set to commence in the second quarter of 2016 and is expected to be complete in May 2019.
Three companies have started construction on the 224.25MW Nicolas-Riou wind project in Canada.EDF EN Canada, Énergie Éolienne Bas-St-Laurent (EEBSL), and Régie intermunicipale de l'énergie Gaspésie-Îles-de-la-Madeleine (RIEGÎM) are working on the CAD500M ($381.4M) project, which is located in the RCM of Les Basques and Rimouski-Neigette.The project is anticipated to be operational at the end of 2017. It will create up to 400 jobs during the construction phase, and up to 10 permanent operation and maintenance jobs.EDF EN Canada’s vice president of development Cory Basil said: “EDF EN Canada welcomes the decree authorizing the construction and operation of the Nicolas-Riou Wind Project and offers our sincere thanks to the government of Québec for its permission to proceed with this important community project.“We are very excited to have formed a strong partnership between EDF EN, EEBSL and RIEGÎM. This project is the result of a partnership that pairs the experience and expertise of EDF EN Canada with the understanding of local expectations brought by our public partners.”65 V117-3.45 MW wind turbines to be used on the wind farm will be supplied by Danish manufacturer Vestas.
US-based services firm CH2M has secured design-build contracts for two infrastructure projects in Texas and California.They include the $1.2bn Northeast Water Purification Plant Expansion (NEWPP) project in Houston and the $85M Cogeneration Facility project in San Jose, California.The NEWPP project will be delivered by the Houston Waterworks Team, a joint venture between CH2M and CDM Smith, over the next nine years.Under the contract, the team will be responsible for designing and constructing a new water facility, start-up, commissioning and operating activities. The project also includes the expansion of the city of Houston's existing NEWPP from 80mgd to 320mgd through two construction phases.CH2M has also been tasked to design and construct the new cogeneration plant at the San José Santa Clara Regional Wastewater Facility.The scope of the project involves a new digester gas treatment system, a control system and monitoring system with connectivity to the Wastewater Facility's Distributed Control System, electrical switchgear, a new digester gas pipeline and natural gas pipeline, new heat recovery systems, and civil work including parking areas and utilities.
Southern Company subsidiary Mississippi Power and Origis Energy have started construction on the $100M solar power plant in Lamar County, Mississippi.Located on a 590-acre site, the facility will feature more than 215,000 polycrystalline solar panels and will produce 52MW of energy, enough to supply about 8,000 homes. Mississippi Power will secure all energy and related renewable energy credits generated by the plant that is set to become the largest solar facility in Mississippi when completed.Mississippi Power president and CEO Anthony Wilson said: "By working with Origis Energy and the Area Development Partnership, we will have nearly doubled the amount of electricity generated by renewable energy going to the Mississippi Power grid."The project will create nearly 100 construction jobs and is scheduled to be complete in the first quarter of 2017.
Enel Green Power North America (EGPNA) has begun construction on the $220M Lindahl wind project in North Dakota, USA.Upon completion, the 150MW wind farm — owned by EGPNA’s subsidiary Lindahl Wind Project — will be able to generate about 625GWh annually, the equivalent to the energy consumption needs of more than 50,000 US households. It will also eliminate about 450,000t of CO2 emissions each year.The power generated from the Lindahl wind project will be sold under a bundled, long-term power purchase agreement to Basin Electric Power Cooperative. Rafael Gonzalez, head of North America area for Enel’s Global Renewable Energies Division, said: “Lindahl underlines the strength of Enel’s growth strategy in North America.“The new wind farm also marks the group’s entrance into a new state, North Dakota, further broadening our geographical footprint in the United States.”The wind farm is scheduled to be operational in 2017.
NextDecade has submitted an application to the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for authorisation to site, construct and operate the Rio Grande liquefied natural gas (LGN) facility and the Rio Bravo Pipeline system.Rio Grande LNG is a proposed 27Mtpa LNG export facility near Brownsville, Texas and the Rio Bravo Pipeline is a 137-mile pipeline system that will provide the facility with its feed gas. NextDecade said that this action represents the most significant milestone to date in the development of Rio Grande LNG, placing the project in an excellent position to sign offtake agreements and declare Final Investment Decision (FID) in 2017.The project is expected to create between 4,000–6,000 construction jobs, and over 200 permanent jobs, representing a potential investment of up to $20bn.NextDecade’s CEO Kathleen Eisbrenner said: “After a productive pre-filing with the FERC and extensive consultation and cooperation with the reviewing agencies and local communities, we are proud to have achieved this major accomplishment.“Despite recent low oil and gas prices, we have found robust appetite for US LNG on a long-term basis all around the world. This interest reaffirms the price competitiveness of US LNG for customers looking to diversify their gas supply on a global level.”The FERC approval is expected to be received by the end of the first quarter of 2017 and the company expects to begin exporting LNG from Rio Grande LNG by the end of 2020.
US-based KP Engineering has won a $100M contract from Targa Terminals, a subsidiary of Targa Resources, to build a 35,000 bpd crude and condensate splitter and an associated tank farm in Texas.The project is a result of more than two years of process study and project development work and will be located at Targa’s storage and marine terminal facility in Channelview.KP Engineering chairman and CEO Brandon Steele said: “We are very blessed to continue to win major projects, such as this opportunity to execute another midstream project for Targa — one of our most valued clients — and we are humbled that they selected us for this job.“We are able to maintain our competitive edge and create exceptional value because we employ some of the finest professionals in our industry. Their character, honor and work ethic is what makes our company great and allows KPE to deliver cost effective, quality EPC solutions.”
Enel Green Power North America (EGPNA), a subsidiary of Enel, has begun construction on the $290M Aurora solar project in Minnesota. Aurora will feature 16 PV plants with a total installed capacity of 150MWdc and will be able to generate more than 210m kWh per annum, which is equivalent to the energy consumption needs of over 17,000 US households. It will also eliminate over 150,000t of CO2 emissions into the atmosphere each year. EGPNA’s CEO Rafael Gonzalez said: "The Aurora project marks a significant step forward in the growth of our solar portfolio“By maximising the distributed solar model, Aurora highlights how innovation and design are driving the future of renewables, while providing communities with access to energy that delivers both the biggest possible environmental benefits and the most economic value.”Construction work is set to create 400 jobs at its peak, and all 16 sites are expected to be operational by the end of 2016.
TransCanada has received the final permits from the BC Oil and Gas Commission for the Coastal GasLink Pipeline Project in Canada. The pipeline will be connected to the proposed LNG Canada natural gas liquefaction and export facility near Kitimat, British Columbia. Estimated to cost about $4.8bn, the project will create about 2,000-2,500 jobs during construction.TransCanada’s president and CEO Russ Girling said: "This is a significant regulatory milestone for our project, which is a key component of TransCanada's growth plan that includes more than $13bn in proposed natural gas pipeline projects which support the emerging liquefied natural gas industry on the British Columbia Coast."A final investment decision by LGN Canada and partners is expected in late 2016 and if the project is set to proceed, construction work will begin in 2017.
Clean energy company Invenergy has broken ground on the $1.2bn Lackawanna Energy Center (LEC) in Jessup, Pennsylvania. The environmentally-friendly facility is being built on a site that is located on the far side of the highway and set behind a tree line, minimising visibility and noise.LEC will be equipped with GE's latest technology, and will generate fewer emissions due to the high-efficiency combustion turbines. The combined-cycle facility will maximize the usage of the heat from natural gas as fuel, increasing efficiency.Kiewit Power Constructors has secured the construction contract for the 1,500MW power plant, which will employ up to 800 construction workers during the construction peak. The energy centre is expected to be operational in 2018 and will then create 30 full-time jobs.
Tenaska has secured $780m in commercial financing for the under-construction Tenaska Westmoreland Generating Station near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.The Tenaska Westmoreland project is owned by Tenaska Pennsylvania Partners, which is comprised of affiliates of Tenaska and Diamond Generating Corporation (DGC), a subsidiary of Mitsubishi Corporation.Black & Veatch is the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor for the 925MW natural gas-fuelled power plant project. The two natural gas turbines to be used will be provided by Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems.Tenaska Development Group president Greg Kelly said: "Achieving financial closing for Tenaska Westmoreland illustrates our ability to develop and advance market-driven power projects. We are pleased to reach this milestone and look forward to the next phase of the project."The power plant is expected to become operational in 2018.
NTE Energy has announced that it is developing three natural gas-fired electric generating facilities involving a total investment of around $2bn.The three facilities will include the Pickaway Energy Center (Pickaway County, Ohio), the Killingly Energy Center (Killingly, Connecticut) and the Reidsville Energy Center (Rockingham County, North Carolina).