Energy Management

net zero

Reaching net zero in the age of COVID-19

Optimizing ventilation and air handling systems is key to achieving net zero energy performance goals.
Cold storage facilities emerging as alternative investment asset class

Cold storage gathers investment steam

Cold storage facilities are flagged to deliver robust returns to investors due to the evolution of food retailing, demand for vaccines and other pharmaceuticals, and the thriving outlook for the warehouse/distribution and logistics sector in general.
Residential energy use re-emerges in Ontario's CDM plans

Heat is on for electricity demand projections

Electricity demand projections through the vaccination rollout period should take two contradictory factors into account, energy management specialists affirm.
Commercial customer's grapple with Ontario's electricity cost allocation

Parsing Ontario’s electricity cost allocation

After a year of operational upheaval and more modifications to electricity pricing policies, BOMA Toronto’s annual workshop to address the complexities of the global adjustment had a lot of ground to cover.
Fossil fuel fired cogeneration systems to lose eligibility for accelerated capital cost allowance

Cogeneration systems to lose tax enticement

The 2021 federal budget adds some clean energy equipment to immediately qualify for accelerated capital cost allowance, and names various combined heat and power applications to be delisted after 2023.
Mass retrofit model set for low-rise trial

Community buildings targeted for retrofit funds

Two distinct, but complementary new federal programs promise funds for community buildings. Both are focused on meeting GHG reduction targets and are aligned with a pledge to invest $15 billion to address climate change and boost the green economy.
Ontario endorses competitive mechanisms to trim the price-point of energy efficiency spending

Ontario to stretch energy efficiency spending

A new slate of conservation and demand management (CDM) programs allocates $456 million for commercial, institutional and industrial consumers over the four-year period from 2021-24.
More electricity price adjustments for Ontario

More electricity price adjustments for Ontario

For now, residential and small business customers enrolled for either time-of-use (TOU) rates or tiered pricing under the provincial regulated price plan will be charged the off-peak TOU rate of 8.5 cents per kilowatt-hour for all electricity consumption.
Multifamily energy performance

Multifamily energy performance typically vexing

Multifamily and industrial properties are routinely lumped together as favoured investment assets, but asset managers face divergent degrees of difficulty when they seek to mine value from energy performance.
BOMA Toronto's race2reduce aligns with climate capitalism

Real estate makes space for climate capitalism

The 2020 race2reduce field boasts more than 1,730 buildings encompassing 248 million square feet of space in common areas and tenant premises — an increase from 650 buildings covering 95 million square feet in 2019.
energy efficiency

Report suggests new building codes aren’t tough enough on energy efficiency

An Efficiency Canada report suggests a lack of mandatory air leak testing in buildings hinders attempts at net-zero energy efficiency.
energy retrofits

Feds to invest $2 billion in energy retrofits

A promised $2 billion investment in large-scale building retrofits will be central to the Canadian government’s job creation ambitions. Energy efficiency champions have plenty of ideas of how and where the funds could be best leveraged.
summer peak demand unexpected in electricity system models

COVID-19 confounds electricity system models

After scrambling to recalibrate their models in the early days of COVID-19-related shutdowns, analysts with Ontario's Independent Electricity System Operator faced more uncharted territory when the hot weather arrived.
Input sought on quantifying life cycle GHGs

Ontario consults on next conservation framework

Residential consumption is identified as a primary concern and opportunity for the 2021-24 period, along with a continued emphasis on reducing system-wide peak demand
Many hydro accounts for common areas in large multi-residential buildings will no longer qualify for the Ontario Electricity Rebate as of November 2020

Ontario Electricity Rebate applied unevenly

Many hydro accounts specifically tied to the common areas of multi-residential buildings will no longer qualify for the 31.8 per cent rebate beginning in November 2020.
energy management paybacks

Ontario stalls energy management paybacks

A temporary adjustment to Ontario’s electricity pricing scheme eliminates cost-saving opportunities that many operators of large commercial buildings were anticipating this summer.
Public disclosure of energy use and GHG intensity holds little appeal for building owners concerned about uninformed scrutiny

Public disclosure could foil energy reporting

The City of Winnipeg has invited commercial building owners and institutional facility managers to affix their Energy Star Portfolio Manager results on a publicly accessible map.