[NEW ANNAN, PE] — After a year of work, Cavendish Farms took the final steps in reducing its carbon footprint.
The company officially opened its unloading station in a ceremony Tuesday, with Robert Ghiz cutting a ribbon between two tube trailer trucks.
The station at their New Annan plant allows two buildings to transfer to natural gas as a form of energy from fuel oil.
The natural gas is transferred from the loading station in Baie Verte, N.B. after being collected from the Maritimes and Northeast pipeline. The loading station compresses the gas into one of 11 tube-trailers, with nine drivers, to be transported to the unloading station.
Cavendish Farms was given a provincial repayable loan of $15-million, on a five-year term, last year to implement the plans.
The loading station in Baie Verte began construction in June 2011 and was completed in November, while the unloading station in New Annan began in August and was completed in November.
The transportation is operated by Island Gas an affiliate company of Cavendish Farms and transports an average of 12 truckloads a day.
Each tube-trailer supplies the two plants in New Annan with two hours of energy, said Robert Irving, president of Cavendish Farms.
“One trailer can supply the energy needs for three Canadians homes for a full year.”
The system will now eliminate the use of 22 million litres of heavy fuel oil annually, said Irving.
