UTAC to invest $104 million to reduce emissions

Tag : sulfur lump

ClevelandUnited Taconite LLC, is proposing to significantly reduceemissions of greenhouse gases, mercury and other air pollutantswhile increasing production of taconite pellets under a permitamendment filed Friday with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency.
Cleveland-Cliffs Inc will spend approximately $104 million onimprovements to its United Taconite (UTAC) facility, Forbes, Minn.,under an initiative called the Green Production Project. Theinvestment includes an estimated $35 million for retrofitting theplant to burn lower-emitting fuels and adding new emission controlequipmentwhile increasing production from 5.3 million tons to 6million tons per year and adding 24 new jobs.
The Green Production Project is a win-win proposition--for theenvironment and for operations at UTAC, said Dana Byrne, vicepresident of public and environmental affairs. When allimprovements are in place, UTAC expects to have the lowest combinedemissions per ton of taconite produced of any facility operating inMinnesota and will have the added potential to reduce emissionsfurther in the future.
Key to the environmental improvements is the ability to uselower-emission fuels. Currently, UTAC uses a combination of fuelsthat includes natural gas, fuel oil, petroleum coke and Easterncoal. The Green Production Project would allow enhanced fuelblending and the use of lower-emitting fuels, resulting insubstantially less use of petroleum coke and natural gas in favorof lower sulfur coal and biomass.
The overall voluntary environmental improvements from UTACs GreenProduction Project are significant:
 Estimated 37% reduction in emissions of sulfur dioxide,nitrogen oxides and particulate matter per ton of pellets produced.
 Up to 30% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions per ton ofpellets produced.
 14% drop in mercury emissions per ton of pellets producedby using new control initiatives and waste gas scrubberimprovements.
 Control of more than 99% of particulate emissions fromLine 1 by replacing existing control equipment with a new wetelectrostatic precipitator.
Ongoing environmental improvement is a top priority forCleveland-Cliffs, and we recognize the need and opportunity tocontinuously improve at UTAC, Byrne said. UTACs Green ProductionProject embodies that commitment and could lead the way for similarimprovements at other Cliffs facilities.
The renovations would allow UTAC to use Renewafuel, anext-generation, carbon-neutral biofuel with substantially fewergreenhouse gas, sulfur dioxide, and mercury emissions than fossilfuels. Cliffs recently became a 70% owner in Renewafuel and hopesto use the renewable fuel in its mining operations.
In addition to the environmental improvements, UTAC will upgradeits concentrator and pellet plant equipment to allow for anincrease in production of 700,000 tons per year.
The necessary permit amendments could be in place by the end of2008; construction will begin shortly after the permit amendmentsare finalized.
The $104 million Green Production Project is part of Cliffsongoing program of capital improvement at United Taconite; Cliffshas invested $100 million in the facility since purchasing thefacility in 2003.
UTAC employs about 557 employees and has an annual payroll,including benefits, of about $50 million.
Cleveland-Cliffs Inc, headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, is aninternational mining company, the
largest producer of iron ore pellets in North America and a majorsupplier of metallurgical coal to the global steelmaking industry.The Company operates six iron ore mines in Michigan, Minnesota andEastern Canada, and three coking coal mines in West Virginia andAlabama.
Cliffs also owns 85% of Portman Limited, a large iron ore miningcompany in Australia, serving the Asian iron ore markets withdirect-shipping fines and lump ore. In addition, the Company has a30% interest in the Amap.