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Electricity Retrofit Incentive Program (ERIP) - Events
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Past Events
Hamilton Health Sciences receive largest rebate in Ontario for energy-efficient updates
Horizon Utilities Corporation today presented Hamilton Health Sciences with a rebate cheque for $639,138, the largest Electricity Retrofit Incentive Program (ERIP) cheque ever presented in the province of Ontario. Hamilton Health Sciences received the rebate for energy-efficient lighting, heating and cooling retrofits. These retrofits have reduced the hospital’s average peak demand for electricity by 2,574 kilowatts to date.
The Electricity Retrofit Incentive Program, offered by Horizon Utilities and the Ontario Power Authority, provides incentives for commercial, industrial, agricultural and institutional customers who complete energy efficiency retrofits that result in reductions in energy consumption or peak demand for electricity.
Hamilton Health Sciences is in the process of completing a $50 million energy retrofit and renewal program at all of their five campuses. By combining energy-efficient upgrades with critical building enhancements, the program will help all campuses reduce their environmental footprint and save $48 million in utility costs over a ten-year period.
The following upgrades were completed at various locations:
- T8 lamps replaced less efficient lamps and the number of lamps was reduced
- Occupancy sensors were installed in offices, storage spaces and mechanical rooms
- Variable frequency drives on fan systems were retrofitted thereby reducing the energy required to circulate air and, in some cases, shutting the fans off in areas that are not occupied after hours and on weekends
- New energy-efficient chillers were installed that use less energy while meeting the hospital's cooling requirements
Additional measures planned for 2010 include upgrades to the air handling system at McMaster University Medical Centre that are expected to save a further 500 kilowatts in peak demand.
“Horizon Utilities is committed to helping institutions like Hamilton Health Sciences take a proactive approach to energy conservation and, in doing so, contribute to building economically viable and sustainable communities,” said Max Cananzi, President and CEO of Horizon Utilities Corporation. “Incentives provided by the Electricity Retrofit Incentive Program reduce the payback period of capital projects. These incentives coupled with the long-term savings on energy bills, make a compelling business case for companies to invest in energy conservation measures.”
“A lot of time and effort has gone into making our family of hospitals as energy-efficient as they can be,” explained Lloyd Ferguson, Hamilton Health Sciences Board Member and Chair of the Planning and Building Committee. “On behalf of the Hamilton Health Sciences Board of Directors we are quite proud of this achievement. We thank Horizon Utilities and the Ontario Power Authority for recognizing these efforts and awarding us with this very generous rebate.”
The Electricity Retrofit Incentive Program is one of a number of Conservation and Demand Management programs launched by the Ontario Power Authority and administered by local utilities, like Horizon Utilities Corporation, to help the province meet its energy reduction targets of reducing electricity consumption by 50 GWh and achieve demand savings of 100 MW by the end of 2010.
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Niagara Region receives rebate and a gold award for installing energy-efficient lighting that will reduce operating costs
The Niagara Region recently received rebate cheques from Horizon Utilities Corporation totaling over $26,000 for installing energy-efficient lighting at three facilities - Linhaven Long-Term Care Facility and the Port Weller and Port Dalhousie Wastewater Treatment Plants.
Today, Horizon Utilities Corporation presented Niagara Region with an Electricity Retrofit Incentive Program (ERIP) Gold Award for achieving peak demand electricity savings of 108 kilowatts as a result of the lighting retrofits.
The Electricity Retrofit Incentive Program, offered by Horizon Utilities and the Ontario Power Authority, provides financial incentives for commercial, industrial, agricultural and institutional customers who complete electrical retrofits that result in demand savings and/or annual energy savings.
By installing energy-efficient lighting at three St. Catharines locations the Niagara Region was able to reduce their peak demand for electricity by 108 kilowatts, which will result in long-term energy savings and sets an example for other regions to follow.
“Horizon Utilities is committed to helping to build economically viable and sustainable communities,” said Max Cananzi, President and CEO of Horizon Utilities Corporation. “By promoting the Electricity Retrofit Incentive Program and assisting customers with their applications, we are helping institutions and companies in St. Catharines reap the benefits of reduced operating costs and an improved environmental footprint.”
“In an economy where every dollar counts,” continued Cananzi, “we commend the Niagara Region for taking the sustainable approach of investing today in energy-efficient retrofits that will result in long-term energy savings for the Region.”
Peter Inman, Niagara Region's associate director of Energy Management agrees. “The award recognizes Niagara Region's commitment to energy conservation and continuous improvement. These three projects are just a sample of the initiatives underway across Regional facilities and operations.”
The Electricity Retrofit Incentive Program is one of a number of Conservation and Demand Management programs launched by the Ontario Power Authority and administered by local utilities, like Horizon Utilities Corporation, to help the province meet its energy reduction targets of reducing electricity consumption by 50 GWh and achieve demand savings of 100 MW by the end of 2010.
The Electricity Retrofit Incentive Program covers two types of projects: prescriptive and custom. Prescriptive projects provide a specific incentive payout for upgrades such as installing more energy-efficient lighting. The custom program is designed for larger projects and provides payouts based on the resulting reduction in peak demand of electricity.
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St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton awarded for energy and cost-saving measures
At an announcement today, St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton was presented with a significant $172,409 Electricity Retrofit Incentive Program (ERIP) cheque by Horizon Utilities. This was in recognition of the peak demand electricity savings of 732 kW achieved through the retrofit program completed in partnership with Honeywell Energy Solutions.
The Electricity Retrofit Incentive Program, offered by Horizon Utilities and the Ontario Power Authority, provides incentives for commercial, industrial, agricultural and institutional customers who complete electrical retrofits that result in demand savings and/or annual energy savings.
St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton is in the midst of a $9.3 million energy retrofit and renewal program with Honeywell Energy Solutions. By combining energy-efficient upgrades with critical building enhancements, the program will help the Charlton and Stoney Creek campuses address deferred maintenance, reduce their environmental footprints and save almost $1 million in utility costs per year. Additional measures include cost-saving improvements to the HVAC systems and lighting at the Charlton and King St. Campuses, such as:
- Changing to T8 lamps, and reducing the number of lamps
- Installing occupancy sensors in offices, storage spaces and mechanical rooms
- Retrofitting variable frequency drives on fan systems thereby reducing the energy required to circulate air and, in some cases, shutting the fans off in areas that are not occupied after hours and on weekends
- Installing new energy-efficient chillers that use less energy while meeting the hospital’s cooling requirements
"By replacing aging chillers with a more energy-efficient district cooling system and installing energy-efficient lighting, with better illumination levels and reduced energy consumption, St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton is setting a great example for other healthcare facilities," said Max Cananzi, President and CEO of Horizon Utilities Corporation. "Money saved on energy is money that can be directed instead to other priorities. We congratulate St. Joseph’s on taking a pro-active, leadership role in energy conservation in our community."
The Honeywell program will significantly curb the hospital’s energy use; it is expected to reduce annual water consumption by more than 22 million litres, natural gas use by 820,000 cubic meters and electricity consumption by 7.3 million kilowatt-hours. In addition, carbon dioxide emissions will be reduced by approximately 1,971 tonnes per year. According to figures from Environment Canada, this is equivalent to removing more than 3,880 cars from the road and 811 homes powered for one year.
"Our top priorities are to provide St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton’s patients with the highest quality care possible and provide our staff with a safe and comfortable work environment,” said Ms. Rebecca Repa, Vice President, Planning, Development and Diagnostic at St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton. “The energy savings through this project demonstrate our commitment to having a positive ecological impact on the community, our patients, and staff."
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New District Chilling Project is economical and energy-efficient
The City of Hamilton’s District Cooling Project, which involves the replacement of the City’s aging downtown chillers with a more reliable cost-and-energy-efficient district cooling system, is resulting in both environmental and economic advantages for the City.
The City has completed phase one of its $10 million District Cooling project, replacing all the chillers at the City’s Central Utilities Plant with new and energy-efficient technology. The City is also in the process of completing the installation of new district cooling piping that will supply chiller water to the newly renovated City Hall. Upon full project completion, the following Downtown Core buildings will be supplied with chilled water from Hamilton’s "new" district cooling system:
- City Hall
- Lister Block
- Copps Coliseum
- Hamilton Convention Centre
- Hamilton Place
- Central Library
- Farmers’ Market
- Ellen Fairclough Building
- Hamilton Art Gallery
- Hamilton Wentworth District School Board office
At today’s Public Works Committee meeting, the City of Hamilton received a $144,200 Energy
Retrofit Incentive Program cheque from Horizon Utilities in recognition of the electricity
savings achieved in phase one of the District Cooling project. The Energy Retrofit Incentive
Program, offered by Horizon Utilities and the Ontario Power Authority, provides incentives
for commercial, industrial, agricultural and institutional customers who complete energy
retrofits that result in on-peak demand savings and/or annual energy savings.
"By replacing aging chillers with a more energy-efficient district cooling system, the City is setting a great example for other municipalities," said Max Cananzi, President and CEO of Horizon Utilities Corporation. "We congratulate the City of Hamilton on taking a pro-active, leadership role in energy conservation in our community."
The first phase of the project cost approximately $2.5 million and included four new chillers and energy efficient pumps and fans at the Central Utility Plant. Phase two, now underway, involves piping to City Hall, new chillers at the Central Library/Farmers’ Market and a pipe to the Lister Building. Phase three, which will be implemented in 2010, will involve new chillers and piping from Copps Coliseum to the Central Utility Plant.
"We are pleased to be working in partnership with Horizon Utilities on this green initiative," said Councillor Bob Bratina, Chair of the Public Works Committee. "When completed, the new district cooling system will use 41 per cent less energy per year, resulting in annual utility savings of $181,000 and a 556-tonne per year reduction in harmful CO2 emissions."
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ERIP Breakfast - Awards Ceremony and Cheque Presentations
Throughout September and early October, electricity customers learned how the Electricity Retrofit Incentive Program (ERIP) could help them save on their energy bills and earn financial incentives.
Your local participating utility/electrical provider hosted seven free workshops across southern and eastern Ontario including:
- White Oaks Conference Resort and Spa - Niagara-on-the-Lake - September 18, 2007
- LIUNA Station - Hamilton - September 19, 2007
- Travelodge Simcoe - Simcoe - September 20, 2007
- 1,000 Islands Best Western Country Squire Resort – Gananoque - October 3, 2007
- Chandelier Place Reception and Conference Centre - Stoney Creek - October 4, 2007
- Best Western Brant Park Inn and Conference Centre - Brantford - October 10, 2007
- Days Inn Welland - Welland - October 11, 2007
At each of these locations there was one workshop for commercial business customers eager to carry out energy equipment retrofits, and one for contractors, distributors and suppliers of the recommended equipment.
Attendance at the workshops increased steadily from event to event reaching a maximum at the Welland workshop where 38 commercial customers and 19 contractors, distributors and suppliers enjoyed presentations about the program and had the opportunity to discuss potential projects with program experts and utility/electrical provider staff. A total of 98 customers and 99 contractors, distributors and suppliers attended all of the events.
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Past Webinars
November 22nd and November 29th, 2007 - Webinars were held to provide information on the ERIP program and application process. The webinars were a great success, with nearly 50 potential applicants attending and a number of others learning about ERIP one-on-one with program representatives.
- View the slide presentation used in the webinar (without audio), click here.