Business Impact Summary
Ventyx Market Operations for Ireland will help Aughinish operate a new combined heat and power (CHP) facility that will provide power and process steam for its alumina refinery. The excess generation will be sold into the Irish electricity market. Market Operations for Ireland will help Aughinish manage gas supply, electricity scheduling and settlement with the Irish grid operator, EirGrid, and emission accounting and trading.
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The Company
Aughinish Alumina operates a 24/7 alumina refinery situated on the Shannon River estuary, 20 miles downstream from Limerick City, Ireland. The company is the largest alumina refinery in Europe.
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The Challenge
Aughinish Alumina extracts alumina from bauxite ore by chemical process.
Alumina is a fine white granular powder that is exported to smelters in the UK,
Scandinavia, and other European countries for further processing, eventually
becoming aluminum metal. Bauxite is received via 65,000-ton bulk ore carriers
from bauxite mines in West Africa and Brazil, and is unloaded at the Aughinish
deep-water marine terminal on the Shannon estuary. Two tons of bauxite yield
approximately one ton of alumina. The plant keeps more than 56 million gallons
(250,000 m3) of process solution circulating through tanks, pressure vessels, and
pipes. To increase process efficiencies and reduce emissions, Aughinish is
building a new CHP plant with two gas turbines.
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The Solution
Market Operations for Ireland will help Aughinish operate a new 150 MW combined heat and power (CHP) facility that will provide the 40+ MW of power and a large part of the process steam for the refinery. The excess generation will be sold into the Irish electricity market. Market Operations for Ireland will help Aughinish manage gas supply, electricity scheduling and settlement with the Irish grid operator - EirGrid and emission accounting and trading.
Market Operations for Ireland automates market operations to improve efficiency, reduce cost, and maximize margins for your energy business. It is a complete scheduling and settlement tool for multiple energy markets. Market Operations for Ireland is customizable and designed to work in conjunction with existing energy trading, scheduling, and accounting systems.
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The Result
Aughinish Alumina was looking for a proven software solution, and a partner with experience in managing energy marketing operations which would facilitate the smooth and seamless integration of a power generating facility within the overall alumina plant without adding to the existing workforce. Another advantage in working with a proven solution provider in market operations is that we work to ensure that any changes in market rules and mechanisms, including settlement calculations, are reflected in our business software. For Aughinish Alumina, the partnership regarding market changes is very important, as Ireland is in the process of becoming a deregulated market.
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