A hydropower-supplied natural gas liquefaction facility
Access to hydroelectricity for the power supply of the process distinguishes the Énergie Saguenay project from other projects of comparable production capacity already in operation, or still in development currently in the world.
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Typically, a natural gas liquefaction plant uses about 10% of its natural gas supply for the energy needs associated with cooling the gas to make it liquid, hence the advantage of using hydroelectricity.
Thus, no other natural gas liquefaction terminal in service in the world can achieve the environmental performance proposed by Énergie Saguenay.
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A credible commitment to achieve carbon neutrality
for the Énergie Saguenay project
Determined to innovate and set a new standard within the industry, GNL Quebec is committed to operating a carbon-neutral natural gas liquefaction facility. With this commitment, GNL Québec is 25 years ahead of the IPCC recommendations which call for a carbon-neutral global economy by 2050.
Carbon neutrality consists of: offsetting, through credible and scientifically recognized measures, all of the direct GHG emissions emitted by an emitter. In short, in the case of the Énergie Saguenay complex, it is a question of ensuring that as much CO2 as the quantity produced by the operations is sequestered, each year, in order to achieve a zero emission balance, and therefore “carbon neutral”. .
The Énergie Saguenay natural gas liquefaction facility thus undertakes to offset, through various measures, all of the GHGs emitted annually by the complex, or 421,000 tonnes per year.
Identification of credible, effective and measurable measures
To credibly achieve carbon neutrality, GNL Québec has mandated the renowned Chair in eco-consulting of the University of Quebec at Chicoutimi (UQAC) to carry out a scientific and independent study to identify credible, effective measures. and measurable allowing the achievement of this ambitious objective.
Innovative courses of action that generate additional benefits for the region and Quebec
The report written by Professor Claude Villeneuve and his team, available here http://ecoconseil.uqac.ca/gnl-quebec/, proposes several innovative and potentially very structuring courses of action for Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean and Quebec, whose deployment is currently being assessed by GNL Quebec. These measures also provide a roadmap and an interesting model for other important companies also wishing to achieve carbon neutrality.
Reduction of GHG emissions through the electrification of the terminal via access to hydroelectricity
Mandate for the Éco-Conseil Chair of the University of Quebec at Chicoutimi in order to identify solutions and the action plan
Application of the Chair's recommendations through 3 main themes (reduction, valuation, compensation), resulting in sub-projects
Implementation of the solutions portfolio and audit of the results once in operation. Cetification can also be envisaged.
| Themes | ProjeCts in stydy | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Reduction of emissions at source | |||
| Electrification of heating units | |||
| Reduction of equipment (valves, flanges, fittings, etc.) | |||
| AI / ML leak detection program | |||
| CO2 capture / recovery | |||
| Purchase / Production of offset credits | |||
| Development of RNG production from forest biomass | |||
| Afforestation - Tree planting (long term program) | |||
| Purchase of offset carbon credits on the markets | |||
| Recovery and reuse of process heat (*) | |||
(*) disseminate nature of the process heat could make this solution obsolete
Determined to exceed requirements and establish a new standard within its industry, GNL Quebec has voluntarily mandated the experts from CIRAIG (the Interuniversity Research Center on the Life Cycle of Products, Processes and Services - attached to Polytechnique Montreal) to assess the environmental impacts of the Énergie Saguenay project on the entire production chain of its liquefied natural gas, from its extraction in Western Canada to its use in the markets.
A life cycle assessment is a very comprehensive assessment of greenhouse gas emissions, from the extraction of natural gas in Western Canada to its final use abroad, on the basis of 'entire life of the project.
Life cycle analysis
The Énergie Saguenay project would allow, according to a conservative medium scenario, a reduction of 28 million tonnes of greenhouse gases on a global scale each year, among other things by substituting natural gas for coal on world markets.
28 million tonnes of GHGs is the equivalent of eliminating a third of Québec's total greenhouse gas emissions each year. So the equivalent of offsetting all of Quebec's emissions every three years of Saguenay Energy's operation
Thanks to the complex's hydroelectricity supply combined with Quebec's cold climate, and due to the lower carbon footprint of natural gas from Western Canada, whose production is governed by environmental standards recognized among the most severe and rigorous in the world, the liquefied natural gas produced in Saguenay will have the lowest carbon footprint in the world.
