Recently installed solar panels, such as these at City Hall, could save Ottawa $200,000 annually.
The City of Ottawa is partnering with Hydro Ottawa to bring solar energy to City Hall.
“We’re saying, ‘Show us the green for the green!’ ” Coun. Maria McRae, chair of the environment committee, said at a public announcement of the strategy on Jan.11.
McRae revealed plans to outfit 20 buildings across the city with solar panels such as the ones installed on the roof of Lisgar Street municipal headquarters.
Two pilot projects were launched in December at City Hall and the Transit Services Integrated Control Centre. Each site hosts a 10-kilowatt “grid-tied” solar photovoltaic system, which is enough to power 1.2 homes.
Centretown News has also previously reported on the installation of solar panels in schools across Ottawa, with plans in place to outfit Centretown schools such as Centennial with panels.
The pilot project at Nepean High School was kicked off in September, and a project to install them throughout the city has been under way since.
McRae invited spectators and media to join her on the City Hall rooftop in order to get a better look at the panels.
“We know that the demand for producing clean energy is strong,” McRae said. “We’ve proven we can do it on a small scale, so now we can do it on a larger scale.”
On Jan. 18, city council's environment committee approved a plan that will see solar panels installed on up to 20 more municipal buildings.
The city is turning to Hydro Ottawa to install panels that will generate between 40 and 330 kilowatts, enough to power more than 300 homes a year. The addition of these solar panels will create a revenue stream of $200,000 a year, or up to $5 million over 20 years.
The city will sell the renewable energy to the Ontario Power Authority as part of its Feed-in-Tariff program over the next 20 years for about 80 cents per kilowatt hour.
Because the city is leasing rooftops like the Nepean Sportsplex and Jim Durrell Community Centre to Hydro Ottawa, there are no additional capital costs – which is a good thing for taxpayers, says McRae.
“The big picture is we receive incredible dividends over time as a sole shareholder of Hydro Ottawa,” said McRae.
Rosemarie Leclair, President and CEO of Hydro Ottawa, was present to formally endorse the deal with the city.
“One of the city’s initiatives is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and show leadership in making our city greener,” said Leclair.
Energy produced from the original pilot projects will be fed back into the provincial power grid through Hydro Ottawa’s distribution system, marking the beginning of the city’s new revenue stream.
Leclair said that the move to solar power would especially benefit those living in Centretown.
“Quite honestly, Centretown citizens are part of some of the greenest, most conservation-oriented communities in our city,” she said.
Centretown resident Erik Bermel says he likes the idea of solar power.
“A lot of residents here are younger, more environmentally concious and trendy,” Bermel says.
“All of these demographics tend to support solar power.”
While the exact date of installation hasn’t been pinned down, the city hopes to start outfitting buildings with solar panels soon.
“Without energy, you have no economy,” said McRae. “Power is volatile.”