| Summary: | ABSTRACT
This paper describes a dynamic simulation model of energy production
and use by pulp and paper mills. The model can be used to assess the costs
and benefits of the use of different proportions of wood waste (referred
to as 'hog fuel') and fossil fuels to generate process steam and electricity,
with the costs and benefits measured from several points of view, principally
those of the mill management and of the economy as a whole. Using either
point of view, the model has been fitted to the eighteen major pulp and paper
mills in British Columbia, and used to assess the consequences of the size and
nature of optimal hog fuel projects. Some results are reported in this
paper and references are given to other papers containing more complete
results of various aspects of the research project.
INTRODUCTION
Whenever there are big changes in technology or relative prices, many
of the standard rules of thumb for optimal choices fall apart, and many
new alternatives have to be considered in a systematic way. This offers
great scope for the design and use of simulation models that capture the
key elements of an industrial process and expose the key alternatives for
This paper was presented to the conference on Simulation Modelling
and Decision in Energy Systems, held in Montreal in June, 1978 and
sponsored by the International Association of Science and Technology
for Development. It represents early results of work also reported in
[1], [2], [3] and [4]. While Helliwell is a continuing member of U.B.C.'s
Department of Economics, Cox is currently at M.I.T.'s Energy Laboratory
Cambridge, Mass.
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