Pre-construction begins for $24.4-million Delta Hospital Energy Centre

Key Takeaways:

• The B.C. government, Fraser Health, and the local hospital foundation are investing $24.4 million in a new energy centre to modernize Delta Hospital’s power systems.
• Design work is currently underway with construction scheduled to run from summer 2027 to spring 2028.
• The facility will expand electrical capacity to power a new MRI unit, an expanded endoscopy space, and the planned Beedie Long-Term Care Centre while providing backup power during natural disasters.

The Whole Story:

Pre-construction and design work are officially underway on a new $24.4-million energy centre at Delta Hospital, marking a major step toward modernizing healthcare infrastructure in the fast-growing Fraser Valley region. The central plant will upgrade utility systems across the campus to support high-tech medical additions and long-term facility expansions, while fortifying the site against severe weather events and power disruptions.

Housing central generators, electrical transformers, main switchgear, and backup systems, the new facility will dramatically increase electrical capacity to power upcoming campus developments. These include a new magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) suite, a purpose-built space for the hospital’s expanding endoscopy program, and the planned Beedie Long-Term Care Centre. Beyond accommodating advanced medical technology, the resilient design ensures the hospital can maintain uninterrupted operations during emergencies such as power outages, floods, or earthquakes.

With Delta’s population projected to grow by 31,000 residents over the next two decades, political and health leaders emphasized that upgrading the core utility grid is essential before breaking ground on new clinical wings. “Our government continues to invest in Delta to support modernized health care to serve a growing and aging population,” said Ravi Kahlon, MLA for Delta North. “This important project will play a key role in delivering the Beedie Long-Term Care Centre project as well as the hospital’s MRI and other significant future projects.”

Fraser Health infrastructure executives noted that central utility upgrades act as the backbone for all future patient care additions on the site. “As our communities grow, it’s important that our hospitals are ready to grow with them,” said Sharat Chandra, Vice President of Planning, Transformation and Infrastructure at Fraser Health. “The new energy centre is an investment in the future of Delta Hospital. It provides the reliable infrastructure needed to support future expansion, new technology and the services people will rely on for years to come. We’re proud to work with our partners to build a hospital that’s ready to meet the needs of this growing community.”

The project relies on close collaboration between provincial health authorities, local government, and community donors who have funded recent clinical additions on site. “The Delta Hospital and Community Health Foundation has been proud to invest in transformative projects at the Delta Hospital campus, including the Beedie Long-Term Care Centre, expanded endoscopy services and our soon-to-be MRI unit,” said Lisa Hoglund, CEO of the Delta Hospital and Community Health Foundation. “This new energy centre will ensure Delta Hospital has the capacity and resilience required to accommodate other new technologies, additional services and future growth in our community, enabling our residents to access more care, closer to home.”

Delta Mayor George Harvie also welcomed the investment, noting that emergency preparedness and expanded clinical capacity must go hand in hand as the municipality densifies. Physical construction on the energy centre is scheduled to begin in summer 2027, with final completion and commissioning targeted for spring 2028.