Posted with permission from the Hamilton Spectator
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Painting the globe to cost hundreds of thousands of dollars in lost revenue
June 22, 2017 by Kevin Werner
Hamilton Spectator|
Hamilton Renewable Power Inc.'s plans to paint the city's distinctive blue and yellow globe at the Woodward Avenue Treatment Plan could cost the corporation hundreds of thousands of dollars in lost revenue this year.
David Oak, business administrator at the city, told the Hamilton Renewable Power Inc. board of directors June 15 that a worst-case scenario is the repainting of the eight-storey sphere will see an "unfavourable variance in revenues" this year of about $578,000.
The landmark sphere is scheduled to be repainted starting in August, forcing the shutdown of the Hamilton Renewable Power Inc.'s co-generation methane plant at the Woodward Avenue Treatment facility for an estimated 22 weeks, or until the end of the year, say officials.
Oak is forecasting for 2017 the city could lose $31,831 in net income.
The corporation's 2017 revenue projection is $3.3 million, but is forecasting instead due to the shutdown of $2.7 million in net revenue resulting in a deficit of $578,468.
Oak presented a second scenario where the cogeneration facility could operate 50 per cent, earning a net profit of $45,000. But he acknowledged it is a "low confidence forecast."
"There are a lot of unknowns," said Oak.
In 2016, Hamilton Renewable Power Inc. earned $3.2 million in revenue, with a net income of $76,892.
Tom Chessman, senior vice-president for Hamilton Renewable Energy Inc. said officials will be investigating whether if it's possible to bypass the sphere and continue operating the cogeneration facility.
He said if bypassing the sphere costs too much, then the cogeneration facility will remain dormant until after the work is done on the sphere.
"We are just trying to figure it out," he said. "If we have to spend too much, obviously it doesn't make any sense. We are trying to get an understanding of how much it will cost."
The sphere, built in 1970 for Horton Steel Works Ltd., is a pressure vessel for the storage of methane gas, a bi-product of anaerobic sludge digestion. It has a volume of 7,600 cubic metres.
The 1.6 MW cogeneration plant, started in 2006, converts methane into electricity and usable heat. The electricity is sold to the Ontario Power Authority under a 20-year agreement, and the heat is used for facility space heating and as part of the wastewater treatment process.
The city wholly owns Hamilton Renewable Power Inc.
An inspection of the sphere found it to be structurally sound, but it needed to be repainted because it has "deteriorated," say officials. Once it is repainted, officials say it could last up to 30 years.
Chessman said the methane in the sphere will be drained and replaced with an inert gas to "stabilize" it.
"We don't want anything but inert gas in it," he said. "We will then start mobilizing, preparing the surface, put the infrastructure up to coat it. We have got to get it done before the snow flies."
Chessman said the colour scheme of blue and yellow, with the large 'Hamilton' letters, and the geographic design of the world will be the same.
The cost of the project is estimated to be $4.4 million and was incorporated into the 2017 water and wastewater budget. The federal government is contributing 50 per cent of the cost, or $2 million and provincial funding is $1 million. The project needs to be completed by March 31, 2018 based upon the federal government's timeline.
The inspection of the sphere was prompted by upgrades being done on the Woodward Avenue Treatment Plant over the next seven years.
Hamilton Community News
by Kevin Werner
Kevin Werner is a Regional Reporter for Hamilton Community News (Ancaster News, Dundas Star News, Mountain News and Stoney Creek News). He can be reached at kwerner@hamiltonnews.com
eMail: kwerner@hamiltonnews.com Facebook Twitter
Full article;
https://www.thespec.com/news-story/7386624-hamilton-methane-ball-getting-a-new-paint-job/
_______________________________________________
Painting the globe to cost hundreds of thousands of dollars in lost revenue
June 22, 2017 by Kevin Werner
Hamilton Spectator|
Hamilton Renewable Power Inc.'s plans to paint the city's distinctive blue and yellow globe at the Woodward Avenue Treatment Plan could cost the corporation hundreds of thousands of dollars in lost revenue this year.
David Oak, business administrator at the city, told the Hamilton Renewable Power Inc. board of directors June 15 that a worst-case scenario is the repainting of the eight-storey sphere will see an "unfavourable variance in revenues" this year of about $578,000.
The landmark sphere is scheduled to be repainted starting in August, forcing the shutdown of the Hamilton Renewable Power Inc.'s co-generation methane plant at the Woodward Avenue Treatment facility for an estimated 22 weeks, or until the end of the year, say officials.
Oak is forecasting for 2017 the city could lose $31,831 in net income.
The corporation's 2017 revenue projection is $3.3 million, but is forecasting instead due to the shutdown of $2.7 million in net revenue resulting in a deficit of $578,468.
Oak presented a second scenario where the cogeneration facility could operate 50 per cent, earning a net profit of $45,000. But he acknowledged it is a "low confidence forecast."
"There are a lot of unknowns," said Oak.
In 2016, Hamilton Renewable Power Inc. earned $3.2 million in revenue, with a net income of $76,892.
Tom Chessman, senior vice-president for Hamilton Renewable Energy Inc. said officials will be investigating whether if it's possible to bypass the sphere and continue operating the cogeneration facility.
He said if bypassing the sphere costs too much, then the cogeneration facility will remain dormant until after the work is done on the sphere.
"We are just trying to figure it out," he said. "If we have to spend too much, obviously it doesn't make any sense. We are trying to get an understanding of how much it will cost."
The sphere, built in 1970 for Horton Steel Works Ltd., is a pressure vessel for the storage of methane gas, a bi-product of anaerobic sludge digestion. It has a volume of 7,600 cubic metres.
The 1.6 MW cogeneration plant, started in 2006, converts methane into electricity and usable heat. The electricity is sold to the Ontario Power Authority under a 20-year agreement, and the heat is used for facility space heating and as part of the wastewater treatment process.
The city wholly owns Hamilton Renewable Power Inc.
An inspection of the sphere found it to be structurally sound, but it needed to be repainted because it has "deteriorated," say officials. Once it is repainted, officials say it could last up to 30 years.
Chessman said the methane in the sphere will be drained and replaced with an inert gas to "stabilize" it.
"We don't want anything but inert gas in it," he said. "We will then start mobilizing, preparing the surface, put the infrastructure up to coat it. We have got to get it done before the snow flies."
Chessman said the colour scheme of blue and yellow, with the large 'Hamilton' letters, and the geographic design of the world will be the same.
The cost of the project is estimated to be $4.4 million and was incorporated into the 2017 water and wastewater budget. The federal government is contributing 50 per cent of the cost, or $2 million and provincial funding is $1 million. The project needs to be completed by March 31, 2018 based upon the federal government's timeline.
The inspection of the sphere was prompted by upgrades being done on the Woodward Avenue Treatment Plant over the next seven years.
Hamilton Community News
by Kevin Werner
Kevin Werner is a Regional Reporter for Hamilton Community News (Ancaster News, Dundas Star News, Mountain News and Stoney Creek News). He can be reached at kwerner@hamiltonnews.com
eMail: kwerner@hamiltonnews.com Facebook Twitter
Full article;
https://www.thespec.com/news-story/7386624-hamilton-methane-ball-getting-a-new-paint-job/