CIB invests $50M to spur low-carbon district energy work
Housing Minister Gregor Robertson said the initiative will support cleaner, more affordable energy.
Key Takeaways:
- The Canada Infrastructure Bank is investing $50 million to help Creative Energy implement low-carbon district energy systems in B.C. and Ontario, beginning with a major project at Thompson Rivers University.
- The university will retrofit 12 buildings and add low-carbon heating to a new facility, replacing natural gas systems with electric heat pumps to move toward net-zero carbon by 2030.
- With buildings accounting for 18% of Canada’s emissions, the partnership aims to accelerate energy efficiency upgrades and reduce emissions across the country through long-term, flexible financing.
The Whole Story:
The Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB) has finalized a $50-million loan agreement with Creative Energy to support deep energy retrofits at buildings in British Columbia and Ontario, starting with a major decarbonization project at Thompson Rivers University (TRU) in Kamloops.
The project will see 12 existing campus buildings upgraded and a new Indigenous Education Centre connected to a centralized low-carbon heating system. The upgrades are expected to cut greenhouse gas emissions from campus heating by 95 per cent, bringing the university close to its target of achieving zero carbon by 2030.
Creative Energy, which operates one of North America’s largest district energy systems, will implement the retrofits using air-source and water-source heat pumps to replace traditional natural gas-based heating systems.
The partnership aims to help building owners across both provinces transition to electrified, high-efficiency district energy systems, with anticipated emissions reductions exceeding 90%.
“This investment is part of the CIB’s $1.2-billion Building Retrofits Initiative,” said Ehren Cory, CEO of the CIB. “It enables building owners to cut emissions, lower energy costs and modernize their assets through flexible, long-term financing.”
Federal Infrastructure and Housing Minister Gregor Robertson said the initiative will support cleaner, more affordable energy while creating jobs and making communities more resilient.
TRU President Brett Fairbairn said the project aligns with the university’s sustainability goals and will double as a learning tool, turning the campus into a “living lab” to showcase clean energy technologies.
Creative Energy President Kieran McConnell called the project a “landmark step” in accelerating large-scale building decarbonization across Canada.
