GE has won its fifth contract in the Alberta oil sands of Canada for use of its evaporation technologies for recycling the blowdown from once-through steam generators (OSTGs).
The latest award means GE’s technology will improve wastewater recovery at an existing oil sands project near Fort McMurray. The facility uses steam from OTSGs to drive the steam assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) process for the production of bitumen, which is a heavy crude oil produced from oil sands.
GE’s system will recycle a portion of the OTSG blowdown, thereby decreasing the volume of liquid waste from the facility and increasing the volume of boiler feedwater available for generation of steam and production of bitumen. To date, 14 SAGD projects have selected GE evaporation technologies, including six over the past 19 months, for their produced water and OTSG blowdown treatment applications.
“We are aligning our businesses to best meet the needs of Canada’s oil sands industry by offering more energy and water efficient products and services,” said Jeff Connelly, vice president, engineered systems–water and process technologies for GE Power & Water.
In December 2011, GE opened a new oil sands support center in Fort McMurray to provide greater local support to customers as they experience significant growth in this sector.