Ethel Lake (ETL1) is a 18 MW Organic Rankine Cycle generator located at Strathcona Resources' Orion facility near Cold Lake, AB. This asset will be able to offset up to 80% of the Orion facilitiy's power consumption from the grid.
An Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) system is a clever twist on traditional steam power generation, designed to convert low- to medium-temperature heat into electricity using organic fluids instead of water. These fluids - like refrigerants or hydrocarbons - have lower boiling points, making them ideal for capturing heat that would otherwise go to waste.
The process captures low-grade thermal heat (~150°C) from Orion's steam assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) operations. The organic fluid absorbs the heat and vaporizes it in a evaporator and then the vapor expands through a turbine, converting thermal energy into mechanical energy. The turbine drives a generator, producing electricity. After expansion, the vapor is cooled and condensed back into a liquid state. Finally the liquid is pumped back to the evaporator, completing the cycle.