Dte Energy Company · NYSE:DTE
Dte Energy — DTE Biomass Energy — LMOP 2014
23 slides from Dte Energy's conference presentation, 2014
Slide 1: Reducing Operating Costs by Over 35% at a CAT 3520 LFGTE Facility
Reducing Operating Costs by Over 35% at a CAT 3520 LFGTE Facility LMOP 2014 Mark Hill - Regional Operations Director 1
Slide 2: DTE Biomass Energy is a subsidiary of DTE Energy
DTE Biomass Energy is a subsidiary of DTE Energy and owns/operates landfill gas to energy projects nationwide • DTE Energy is an $9 billion/yr S&P 500 company • DTE Biomass Energy owns and operates landfill gas to electricity, direct use, and high- BTU sites across the country. These sites include (
Slide 3: The Spoiler Slide
The Spoiler Slide Cost Reduction Percentage 2010 to 2013 CAT 3520 Site 0-100 Scale 2010 = 100 68% Cost Savings 66% Cost Savings Results of Oil Trial and Better 49% Cost Savings Oil Management 63% Cost Savings 2013 Costs 2010 Costs On-stream Rate increase from 93.2% (2010) to 96.2% (2013) *Includes C
Slide 4: Agenda
Agenda • Spark Plug Program • Oil Program (Infineum Trial Oil) • Major Maintenance Cost Savings • Turbo Cost reductions • Recruiting the Right People 3
Slide 5: Spark plug study and $11,000 of dirty plugs
A study was done comparing different spark plug performance under different cleaning intervals to determine the lowest cost per operating hour plug Study Objectives 1. Determine best spark plug type 2. Determine best cleaning practices 3. Determine best gapping scheme based on LFG and engine conditi
Slide 6: Spark plug run life trials
Trials have shown that spark plug life of over 3,000 hours is achievable. Spark plug changes were timed with other maintenance to reduce engine down-time Spark Plug Set #1 Spark Plug Set #2 Run life Total Plug Reason for Run life Total Plug Run # (hrs) Life (hrs) change Run # (hrs) Life (hrs) Reason
Slide 7: Spark plug cleaning process
Cleaning spark plugs takes about 3 minutes per plug and requires less than $1000 in tools. 1. Determine when plugs need cleaning (frequent failures or high transformer temps) 2. Shutdown engine– change plugs using ½ inch impact gun 3. Bead blast using #8 glass bead 4. Clean threads with wire wheel 5
Slide 8: Drivers of 68% lower spark plug costs
A change in spark plug philosophy from “use and toss” to experimentation to find the best value plug and the best re-use techniques led to a 68% decline in spark plug costs 2010 Situation 2013 Situation OEM Spark Plug 3rd Party Spark Plug Change based on Change at 1,000 hrs transformer voltage or fa
Slide 9: Agenda
Agenda • Spark Plug Program • Oil Program (Infineum Trial Oil) • Major Maintenance Cost Savings • Turbo Cost reductions • Recruiting the Right People 3
Slide 10: Oil sampling evolved to a weekly program
Oil sampling evolved from a monthly test report from the oil vendor to a weekly program designed to diagnose problems early 2010 Situation 2013 Situation Monthly Oil Sampling Weekly Oil Sampling Oil Vendor Testing 3rd Party Testing Oil changes based on Oil changes based expected interval on condemni
Slide 11: Infineum salicylate detergent technology
Both the salicylate “head” and long linear “tail” of the unique Infineum detergent contribute to the deposit control and acid neutralization required for LFGTE performance One attachment point Conventional Detergents Short, trapezoid body Path for acid Space for Two attachment points deposits to for
Slide 12: Better control of cylinder head deposits
Better control of cylinder head deposits, due to enhanced detergent technology, reduces valve torching and increases time required between top-end overhauls Reference Oil 1 Reference Oil 2 Infineum Oil 4028 hours 4730 hours 8024 hours
Slide 13: Acid Number Increase
Control of Acid Number Increase reduces corrosion and suggests possibility to increase oil change interval (for this test, oil change interval was kept constant for all oils) 3 Reference Oil 1 Acid Number Increase Reference Oil 2 Infineum Oil 2 1 0 0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 Oil Hours
Slide 14: Oil costs dropped 66% from 2010 to 2013
By switching from synthetic oil to conventional oil (and eventually the Infineum Oil), oil costs dropped by 66% from 2010 to 2013 reduction in engine oil Drivers of 66% Lower Oil Pricing costs Less Oil Usage While the savings from lower conventional oil pricing was expected, the drop in oil consumpt
Slide 15: Agenda
Agenda • Spark Plug Program • Oil Program (Infineum Trial Oil) • Major Maintenance Cost Savings • Turbo Cost Reductions • Recruiting the Right People 3
Slide 16: Extended major maintenance cycles
The Infineum oil, combined with better tuning and oil change intervals, has led to significantly better major maintenance cycles Engine Hours 4,000 8,000 12,000 16,000 20,000 24,000 28,000 32,000 36,000 40,000 44,000 48,000 Major Maintenance Cycle Shortened Cycle (2010) C T I C T I C T M C T I CAT R
Slide 17: Pit stop style top-end overhauls
In addition to extending the maintenance intervals, DTE Biomass examined the part cost and time associated with the major maintenance “Pit stop style” top-end overhauls with pre- positioned parts, tools and rehearsed jobs Work is DTE Biomass Energy led Technicians at a team-building event Technician
Slide 18: Agenda
Agenda • Spark Plug Program • Oil Program (Infineum Trial Oil) • Major Maintenance Cost Savings • Turbo Cost Reductions • Recruiting the Right People 3
Slide 19: Turbo costs reduced by 63%
Turbo Costs were reduced by 63% through remanufacturing turbos rather than returning them to OEM and running the turbos past the OEM recommended 8,000 hrs. 2010 Situation 2013 Situation Changed turbos every Changed turbos every 8,000 hours 11,000-23,000 hrs Only changed OEM 3rd Party remanufactured
Slide 20: Agenda
Agenda • Spark Plug Program • Oil Program (Infineum Trial Oil) • Major Maintenance Cost Savings • Turbo Cost Reductions • Recruiting the Right People 3
Slide 21: Recruiting the right people
None of the above improvements are secrets – they were all common sense and were Technician Driven. Hiring the right people is the most important activity any manager does. DTE Biomass continuously recruits and has developed a 3 interview process that selects fewer than 10% of those who Jason – Faci
Slide 22: Conclusion
Conclusion DTE Biomass Energy continues to use cost saving techniques in its new plants, allowing profitable partnerships with host landfills Uwharrie National Forest – North Carolina (6) CAT 3520 LFGTE project under construction – 10 MW of electric production online in Spring 2014
Slide 23: Contact Information
Contact Information DTE Biomass Energy Mark R. Hill Regional Operations Director 425 S. Main St. Suite 201 Ann Arbor, MI 48104 hillmr@dteenergy.com 1-734-302-5359 Infineum Dr. Fred W. Girshick Large Engine Lubricant Additives Fred.Girshick@Infineum.com 1-908-474-3247