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Industrial operations such as pulp mills need heat to make their processes work properly, and at most British Columbia mills much of that heat is generated by burning natural gas*. It is possible to use that same gas to boil water to run a turbine and generate electricity, and then use the left over heat for the industrial process. This is known as cogeneration, and it is a particularly efficient way to use the energy that is stored in a fuel like gas.
There is already one cogeneration plant operating on Vancouver Island, and there is the potential for others to be built at other mills.
*At many mills heat is also produced by burning waste wood products - also known as hog fuel.