The Bluewater Energy Park is a fully serviced 268-acre site located on the bank of the St. Clair River. The Park has 84 acres available for the development of new manufacturing and the anchor tenant, TransAlta, can provide steam and electrical power from their 506 MW Sarnia Regional Cogeneration Plant at globally competitive rates.
Prior to being acquired in 2009 by TransAlta, the Bluewater Energy Park was a chemical manufacturing site belonging to Dow Chemicals. The previous industrial facilities have been demolished and the land has been remediated to typical brownfield standards. Access to existing infrastructure, including steam lines, water lines, pipe racks, rail and marine services, and electrical services from on-site sub stations are available to locations across the site. Utility services generally run along the shoulder of the roadways and existing roads separate the site into various parcels. The land can be subdivided according to the tenant’s requirements, or existing parcels can be joined to create larger lots where necessary.
1475 Vidal St. South, Sarnia, Ontario, N7T 8H1
Amenities
Asking Price: negotiable – depending on parcel size, electricity requirements, and location within the site. The typical indicative lease rate is approximately $500 per acre per month. This is negotiable, and will vary depending on acreage, steam, and electricity requirements.
Zoning: Through the City of Sarnia, the site is zoned Heavy Industrial (HI). Permitted uses include food manufacturing, petrochemical manufacturing, power generation, and other general manufacturing.
- Electrical
- Electricity is provided from TransAlta’s 506 MW cogeneration facility. The facility is located within the Bluewater Energy Park on-site and is connected to the transmission system via 2 230kV feeders. On-site distribution at 13.8kV with redundant supply.
- STEAM
- Steam pressure and temperature available – 45 psig at 294 degrees F., 165-185 psig at 535 degrees F., and 420-485 psig at 625 degrees F.Steam production originates at the TransAlta Co-Generation facility located on the Bluewater Energy Park property and is supplied via a pipe rack that bisects the industrial park.
- WATER
- Raw water and demineralized water are available for cooling and process from the St. Clair River. Supply is from a 24-inch line at a pressure of 80 psig. The system has capabilities of providing 900 million litres per day (900,000 m3). Current excess capacity is ~400,000,000 litres per day. The site’s system consists of a service loop throughout the site,
- WASTE WATER
- Process wastewater can be treated at the neighbouring ARLANXEO biological wastewater treatment plant with a capacity of 24,000 m3/day (7 million U.S. gallons).
- NARURAL GAS
- The site is serviced by multiple gas lines. The gas distribution company is Enbridge Gas Ltd
Highway and Road:
There are two access roads to the site, each with security gate and security infrastructure in place. Currently, one of the security gates is operated on a daily basis. The site is 11-kilometres southwest of Provincial Highway 402 by way of Provincial Highway 40.
Highway 402 is a limited access, multiple lane freeway running from the Michigan-Ontario border in the west to London and Highway 401 in the east. There are eight interchanges within Sarnia-Lambton.
Highway 40 runs south from Highway 402 through the major industrial corridor in Sarnia and St. Clair Township and into Chatham-Kent where it connects with Highway 401. Within Sarnia portions of Highway 40 are four lanes.
Rail:
CSX Transportation shunting on site and main line with connection to CN (CN is responsible for moving trains into Michigan via the St. Clair Rail Tunnel in Sarnia). Spur lines are conveniently located throughout the site. Some rail spurs will require improvements.
Marine:
Located on the banks of the St. Clair, the site has access to a 750-foot liquid loading dock 120-feet from shore. This provides access to the St. Lawrence Seaway system and the Atlantic Ocean. Some repairs and improvements to the existing liquid loading dock at the Bluewater Energy Park would be required prior to use.
Oceangoing ships accessing the Sarnia-Lambton area are limited to 740-feet in length, 78-feet in width, and 26.5-feet in draft due to the need to traverse the Welland Canal system which provides access to the Upper Great Lakes. The liquid loading dock can accommodate all ships that meet these size restrictions.
Industrial: combined heat and power (TransAlta Sarnia Regional Cogeneration Facility); synthetic polymers (ARLANXEO), bio-succinic acid (LCY Biosciences); FDCA (Origin Materials: under construction); carbon black (Cabot Carbon); styrene (Styrolution)– north of site; petroleum refinery (Suncor Energy) – south of site.
There are several parallel plots totaling 84 acres that is immediately available for development:
| Block | Area (Acres) |
| 50 | 16 |
| 80 | 21 |
| 90 | 21 |
| 120 | 15 |
| 130 | 9 |
Available Office Space: The River Centre is a 110,000-square foot office and laboratory complex located at the west side of the Bluewater Energy Park on the bank of the St. Clair River. Offices are on a two-story atrium style corridor that looks out over the riverfront. Laboratories are on the east side of the building with excellent access to shipping and receiving facilities. There is currently no warehousing available on the property, however, options are available within proximity if facility owner desires not to build.
Available Infrastructure to be Rented of Bought: The Bluewater Energy Park has significant existing infrastructure that can be utilized for development purposes. Utilization of existing and shared infrastructure can result in a capital cost savings of up to 20% for developments considering location of their project at the site. The Bluewater Energy Park takes a condominium style approach to these shared services that include; Basin System, Security, Landscaping of Common Area, Snow Removal, Waste Removal, etc. The costs of each item are typically based on the volume of space occupied by each tenant. The tenant cost is assessed based on the proportionate share.
The following is a list of infrastructure that may be accessed in association with development of either the available parcel of land:
- Site is fully serviced.
- Industrial park is serviced by CSX Line main line, with proposed spur loop to be installed from Alpenglow (VIP) Rail in the future. The Bluewater Energy Park has maintained all relevant crossing agreements to ensure ease of logistics.
- 420-485#, 165-185#, 45# Superheated Steam Supply
- Electrical Distribution at 13.8kV
- Process/Cooling Water (permitted by the owner)
- Firewater System
- Storm/Cooling Water Sewers
- Natural Gas Distribution (via Enbridge Gas)
- Potable Water from Lambton Area Water Supply System
- City Sewer Connection
- Security
- Road Access / Maintenance/ Lighting
- Medical Services (via ARLANXEO)
- Marine Terminal for Lake or Ocean Shipping (operated by VIP Rail)
- Truck and Rail Logistics to be Available
- Wastewater Treatment Bio-Oxidation Facility – Aerobic Digestion Process. (via ARLANXEO)
SARNIA LAMBTON ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP
Matthew Slotwinski – Senior Economic Development Officer
matthew@sarnialambton.on.ca | sarnialambton.on.ca | +1 519-332-1820