In coming weeks, Delmarva Power will begin a natural gas expansion project funded by DuPont Co. to establish service for the DuPont Experimental Station near Wilmington.
The research site’s boilers use fuel oil, an energy source that was once less expensive than natural gas.
Converting the DuPont Experimental Station to natural gas has environmental benefits, according to a Delmarva release.
The conversion will eliminate sulfur dioxide emissions from the site and is expected to result in a nearly 30 percent reduction in carbon dioxide emissions. That is the equal to removing 4,500 cars from highways. It will also eliminate 1,000 oil tank truck deliveries to the DuPont Experimental Station each year.
Total cost of the project was not disclosed.
The project was approved by regulatory authorities including but not limited to DNREC and DelDOT. The station is near Brandywine Creek.
As new gas discoveries came into production in Pennsylvania, natural gas prices have become less volatile than in the past, leading industrial companies to look at converting their boilers to the fuel.
Construction is expected to alter traffic patterns in the surrounding area at various times from Monday through Friday. Delmarva Power is working with DuPont to manage the project and comply with safety in all areas where the two organizations share a path.
Traffic is congested in the area, due in part to the failure to rebuild the Tyler McConnell Bridge over the Brandywine, due to environmental issues.
Everything possible will be done to protect the environment along the path in compliance with local, state and federal regulation. The project is expected to be completed by late 2016, according to the Delmarva release.
The Experimental Station has long employed many of the nation’s top researchers. Nylon, Kevlar are only a couple of the major discoveries made at the site that is near original DuPont powder mills, now the site of the Hagley museum.
