Did you know?
District energy is a concept that originated in North America in the 1880s.
Roughly 130 district energy utility plants are operating in Canada.
Most District Energy utility systems operate at a reliability of 99.99%.
As District Energy expands local design, construction, operating and maintenance employment opportunities will grow.
District Energy infrastructure is largely underground and therefore complimentary with park space and community aesthetics.
District Energy is fully funded from service fee revenue and has no impact on Richmond property taxes.
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Background
District energy has a long history of providing sustainable heating solutions for households and businesses. Since the 1880s district energy has been in use in major metropolitan areas across the world. Places such as Toronto, New York, and Chicago all provide district energy services. Roughly 130 district energy utility plants are operating in Canada, providing reliable, affordable energy every day.
In 2012, the Alexandra District Energy Utility was launched in the West Cambie neighbourhood, a district energy system that uses innovative geothermal technology to heat and cool buildings and pre-heat domestic hot water in the West Cambie neighbourhood. In 2015, the phase 3 expansion was completed, increasing the overall energy centre footprint to add two 2,550kW evaporative fluid coolers and three 1,500kW condensing boilers with enough space for future expansions.
In 2014, the Oval Village District Energy Utility was launched adjacent to the Richmond Olympic Oval. Serving new mixed-use communities with heat and domestic hot water, equipped with 11 MW of plant capacity, the first phase of district energy in the City Centre uses natural gas boilers to provide heat.
As of 2016, there are 1,100,000 square feet of residential space and 30,000 square feet of non-residential space connected to the Alexandra district energy system