Gas flaring at Unit 17 power plant on February 25

Medicine Hat – Construction at the City of Medicine Hat’s Unit 17 power generation plant is nearing completion and the critical step of gas flaring will occur on Friday, Feb. 25. Flaring is expected to begin at 8 a.m. and will continue intermittently through the morning.

Gas flaring is a systematic process to ensure any particulates from construction are removed from the unit’s infrastructure in preparation for the first firing of the generation plant during the commissioning phase.

Residents can expect to see a temporary 100-foot-tall flue stack on site with flames an additional 30-40 feet in the air. Anyone in the area may notice a sound related to the activity, but it should not be disruptive to area businesses or the nearest residents.

These activities are planned and there is no cause for public concern. Local fire departments and surrounding businesses have been notified.

Unit 17 is located on city-owned land at the Cousins West power plant site west of Box Springs Road and 52 Street Northwest, adjacent to Unit 16, which was commissioned in 2017. On Aug. 17, 2020, City Council approved bylaw #4625 to incur indebtedness in the amount of $66 million to install the new electric generation plant. Unit 17 will be in service this spring.

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