Great River expands and dryfines in China
By Kristine Kostuck
Editor
Great River Energy will be opening their Spiritwood power plant near Jamestown next fall where they will begin marketing their lignite coal dryfining process that is receiving world-wide attention.
"We built that plant at a time when the economy was booming and there was a large need for electricity and energy. Then the recession hit," said Lyndon Anderson, the Communications Supervisor of Great River Energy. "Now, we have a need for it."
When the plant opens in early November the Falkirk mine will distribute coal to the Coal Creek Station where it will be run through the dryfining process to improve the quality of the coal and make it more environmentally conservative.
The dryfining process is particularly important to the North Dakota coal industry because it creates a purer longer- lasting form of coal. North Dakota is known for its lignite coal, a younger coal that burns quicker than other forms that have aged. These older kinds of coal are found in our neighboring state Montana and in Wyoming, Because this form lasts longer, they are leading the mining industry.
During the process the coal is dried in an oven where water is removed from the coal. This makes it longer lasting and creates an opportunity to remove the more detrimental particles, like S02, sulfur dioxide and mercury, from it.
