Seattle Steam Company
CenTrio, formerly known as the Seattle Steam Company, is a district heating public utility that provides steam (generated by burning natural gas, diesel oil, and recycled wood) to over 175 businesses in downtown Seattle and on First and Capitol Hills via 18 miles of steam pipeline.<ref name=VirginPI>Template:Cite news</ref> Its plants are located on Western Avenue at Union Street, just west of Pike Place Market, and on Post Avenue at Yesler Way, in Pioneer Square.
AboutEdit
Seattle Steam was founded in 1893 as the Seattle Steam Heat and Power Co. It owns 18 miles of pipes under the streets of Downtown. Its average winter output is Template:Convert of steam per hour; this drops to less than Template:Convert in the summer.<ref name=VirginPI/>
Seattle Steam's biggest customers are Swedish Medical Center, Harborview Medical Center, and Virginia Mason Medical Center, which use the steam for heat and sterilization. Other big customers include hotels, which use the steam for heat and for generating hot water, Seattle Public Library, which uses it for heat and the Seattle Art Museum, which uses it for heat and humidity control.
In May 2014, Seattle Steam was bought by Enwave Energy Corporation, a unit of Brookfield Asset Management of Toronto, and renamed Enwave Seattle.<ref name=Crosscut>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Private Seattle downtown steam utility sold, Seattle Times, May 8, 2014. Retrieved 2016-01-22</ref> In April 2021, Australian investment firm QIC partnered with Ullico to acquire "100% interest"<ref name=DEmag>Template:Cite magazine</ref> in Enwave Energy's U.S. business, rebranding those operations (including Enwave Seattle) to CenTrio.<ref name=GlobalNewswire>Template:Cite news</ref>
GalleryEdit
- Seattle Steam Company from Western.jpg
Main plant, seen here from Western Avenue
- Seattle Steam Company.jpg
Main plant, downtown
- Seattle - Post Steam Plant from south - B.jpg
Old Post Station, Seattle Steam Company (at center)
- Seattle Steam Goes Green sign Western Avenue Seattle Washington.JPG
Sign on wood handling building on Western Avenue
- New Seattle Steam plant Western Avenue downtown Seattle Washington.JPG
Wood handling building and storage silo
- Seattle Steam plant Western Avenue Seattle Washington 2010.JPG
View of the main plant on Western Avenue
See alsoEdit
- Holly Steam Combination Company
- Utilities of Seattle
ReferencesEdit
External linksEdit
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