Commercial Properties still Turn To Rooftop Solar - aadc

Loblaw says its $10-million, 7.5-megawatt rooftop solar project - anticipated to be finished in 2026 - at its distribution centre in East Gwillimbury, Ont., will be the nation's largest.Supplied/ Loblaw Cos.

Ltd. Large-scale rooftop solar jobs have yet to gain widespread traction with Canadian developers.

Financing can be complicated and it can require time for developers to acquire returns on their investments, but new solar jobs are still being revealed, states Victoria Papp, senior director of strategy and development at BOMA Canada, a group representing Canadian building owners and managers.

" Solar uptake in commercial realty is still far from being a widespread practice across the market, however it's definitely increasing," Ms. Papp states. "It can be challenging to retrofit buildings that were never developed with solar panels in mind."

This month, the Canadian Renewable resource Association said it's tracked more than $31-billion in investment in renewable resource - such as solar and wind power sources - across the nation. A recently released report likewise discovered Canada's solar, wind and energy storage sectors have grown by 46 percent over the previous five years, with 10,000 megawatts of brand-new capability anticipated to be linked by 2030.

As a contrast, almost 6,500 megawatts of solar power - enough to power as many as two-million homes - was generated in Canada in 2022, according to the federal government.

Scaling solar across Canada

While national investment figures highlight solar's growing function in Canada's energy mix, some business are taking the lead in scaling up projects of their own.

In late July, Loblaw Cos. Ltd. revealed it's developing what it states will be Canada's largest roof solar system setup at its new circulation centre in East Gwillimbury, Ont., north of Toronto.

The $10-million, 7.5-megawatt job, anticipated to be completed in 2026, will cover the building's roofing system with almost 435,000 square feet of solar panels - about the size of seven football fields. It's anticipated to create 8.5-million kilowatt-hours a year, about a quarter of the requirements of Loblaw's automatic circulation centre.

" The structure itself is very energy-intensive due to the automation and refrigeration systems inside," states Tom Marson, Loblaw's vice-president of constructing technology and energy. "The photovoltaic panel system will assist us offset energy usage in the building."

Great Circle Solar Management Corp. will be the contractor, owner and operator of the task and offer the power to Loblaw under a long-term arrangement. The task is the biggest of almost 60 rooftop solar initiatives in which the two companies have partnered in the previous ten years.

" Power from the solar panel system on the roofing is fed straight into the electrical rooms of the center and utilized to straight power the site's operations in East Gwillimbury," states Clarke Herring, Great Circle Solar's CEO.

Meeting business environment targets

Commercial circulation centres are not the only kinds of residential or commercial properties setting up tasks. In Waterloo, Ont., Conestoga College set up a 1.3-megawatt solar photovoltaic system at its Kitchener-Doon school. The system, which went live in 2023, generates about 1.6-million kwh of eco-friendly, tidy energy a year, enough to power at least 40,000 homes.

The system, which spreads out more than 3,000 photovoltaic panels over the roofs of several structures, assists Conestoga meet 15 percent of its annual electrical energy requirements and offset peak demand from the standard grid by 57 percent.

" We're committed at Conestoga to supporting Canada's clean growth and climate-change goals for a more sustainable future," says Tim Schill, the college's vice-president of centers and capital advancement. "This job is a considerable step forward in helping in reducing [greenhouse gas] emissions and promoting sustainable stewardship of our environment and resources."

Ontario's Conestoga College has actually set up a 1.3-megawatt solar photovoltaic system at its Kitchener-Doon school that creates about 1.6-million kilowatt hours of renewable, clean energy a year.Supplied/ Conestoga College

Loblaw states one of the reasons for installing photovoltaic panels at its circulation centre is to assist satisfy the business's net-zero emissions decrease targets.

" We're intending to accomplish net zero for our Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions by 2040," Mr. Marson states. Scope 1 emissions are produced directly from sources owned or managed by a company, while Scope 2 emissions represent those produced from the generation of bought electrical power that's consumed by the company or organization.

" Procuring and consuming sustainable energy on residential or commercial properties where high amounts of energy is taken in is a critical step for us," Mr. Marson says, adding it's especially essential for Loblaw, given that the business connects with customers daily.

" We operate countless shops all across the country, which suggests we are deeply woven into the fabric of the neighborhoods we serve," he states. "Millions of day-to-day consumers and our 220,000 coworkers and workers anticipate us to lead."

According to Mr. Marson, Loblaw originally set carbon reduction targets for its corporate shops in 2016, and it fulfilled those years ahead of schedule. "We reset our baseline in 2020, and included franchise stores and Shoppers Drug Mart places. Ever since, we've lowered our carbon footprint 16 percent and continue to make significant progress."

Finding the right financing

Mr. Schill states building small and medium-sized solar tasks, such as Conestoga's, can be tough due to the fact that of troubles protecting funding, in addition to moving guidelines and reward programs.

" Until recently, it was simpler to get favourable government-backed funding if you had a $100-million task," he says. The move by Prime Minister Mark Carney to ditch the undesirable federal carbon tax was a problem since the tax had used gas more pricey and solar power more appealing, he includes.

Mr. Schill is motivated by current moves such as the new $100-million partnership between the Canada Infrastructure Bank and Scotiabank, which aims to help owners retrofit small and mid-sized business structures.

Ali Hoss, head of sustainability and ESG at Colliers Canada, says the country can benefit from moves in the United States to cease solar-power rewards.

" Investors in the U.S. need to now price-in high political threat," he states. "Canada, by contrast, has broad, multi-party assistance for sustainability. This predictability is an important benefit for bring in the long-lasting, patient capital needed genuine estate and infrastructure tasks like solar."

Great Circle Solar's Mr. Herring concurs. "Going solar offers an essential long-term fiscal hedge versus unpredictable future electrical energy expenses."

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