Green fever sweeps province

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Avrom Charach stands next to energy-efficient boiler installed in one of firm's apartment buildings. (KEN GIGLIOTTI / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS)

Retrofit fever is sweeping through Manitoba's commercial real estate sector.

Manitoba Hydro figures show there was a 500 per cent increase between 1998 and 2008 in the number of commercial property owners who participated in its Power Smart for Business program.

They also show that more than 14,000 customers have tapped into the program since its inception in 1991.

Colleen Kuruluk, Hydro's manager of marketing programs, and Roberto Montanino, its supervisor of commercial programs, said one of the reasons for the surge in participation is because there are more energy-saving options and technologies available now for building owners to consider.

Montanino said when Hydro launched Power Smart for Business, all it had to offer was a lighting program. Today, there are 20 different options -- everything from replacing their windows to installing a parking lot controller to reduce the amount of electricity used to heat vehicles during the winter months.

"We have something for almost every business," Kuruluk said, including big ones, small ones, industrial plants, office buildings, apartment blocks, personal care homes, hotels and restaurants.

Another reason for the growth in retrofit projects is a growing desire among property owners to reduce their energy consumption and help the environment, Kuruluk said.

"And energy efficiency is the green option that actually pays you back."

Energy-efficient upgrades can also improve the performance and comfort of a building, she said, and make it easier to attract and retain tenants.

An official with Kay Four Properties Inc. said there are three reasons why it tries to do at least one Power Smart upgrade every year within its portfolio of 13 apartment blocks -- to reduce operating costs, to save on capital costs and to help the environment by consuming less energy.

"When you can do all three at the same time, which you can do with the Power Smart program, it becomes a no-brainer business decision," Avrom Charach, the firm's director of finance, said in an interview.

In 2007, for example, Kay Four installed a new high-efficiency condensing boiler in its apartment block at 1035 Powers St. It's saving 27 per cent, or $7,000 a year, on its heating bill.

"And that could be the case every year for the next 30 or 40 years," Charach said.

Kay Four began doing regular energy-efficient retrofits in the late 1990s. Since then, it has installed new exterior lights at 12 of its properties, replaced some of the windows in 13, installed new interior lights in four, installed a new boiler in two and replaced all of the windows in one building.

Charach, who is also vice-president of the Professional Property Managers Association of Manitoba, said a lot of other PPMA members are also doing energy-saving upgrades on a regular basis, usually for many of the same reasons as Kay Four.

He said Manitoba Hydro also deserves credit for the increased participation rates. It does a good job of marketing its Power Smart program and informs PPMA members about new energy-saving options as they become available. Also, in many cases the financial rebates and incentives it offers offset the added cost of going with high-efficiency products, he said.

Kuruluk and Montanino said Hydro officials will do a free inspection of a building and make suggestions. They'll also tell building owners about any financial incentives that would be available to them.

"But we don't do designs," Montanino said, adding it leaves that to design experts.

He recommends building owners contact Hydro early on in the process, when they're still formulating their plans.

"That way we're able to help them at the point in time when they have the most flexibility because they haven't made any commitments yet," he said.

Kuruluk said it makes sense for Hydro to encourage energy efficiency because it saves its customers money, helps the environment and frees up more electricity for Hydro to sell in export markets.

murray.mcneill@freepress.mb.ca

Make a difference, save cash

Manitoba Hydro figures show commercial property owners can achieve substantial savings by making energy-efficient upgrades to their buildings. While high-efficiency products can be more expensive, the amount of time it takes to recoup the added costs can be surprisingly short.

Here are some examples of the more popular commercial upgrades, the typical annual savings that can be achieved and the average payback time:

Product / Average savings / Average payback

Lighting / 40 per cent / Three years

Furnaces / $400 / Two years

Boilers / $7,000 / Three years

Parking lot (electrical) controllers / $4,500 / One year

Insulation (roof) / $1,768 / 2.6 years

Insulation (walls) / $2,295 / 4.1 years

CO2 sensors / $230 per sensor / Three years

Windows / $688 / 1.9 years

Clothes washers / $150 /  Four years

Refrigerators / $6,000 / Three years

Winnipeg's Kay Four Properties installed a new boiler in one of its apartment blocks and cut its annual energy bill by 27 per cent, or $7,000. Here are other examples:

• Royal Bank Building, 220 Portage Ave.: Slashed its electricity and natural gas bills by $55,000 a year through a series of measures, including lowering the building's thermostat at night and installing CO2 sensors.
• Rae & Jerry's Steakhouse, 1405 Portage: Shaved $3,000 a year off its electricity bill by installing energy-efficient refrigeration equipment, lighting and kitchen appliances.
• Russell Inn, Russell: Reduced its annual water-heating bill by $30,000 by installing 12 geothermal heat pumps. Also cut its annual lighting bill by $700 by upgrading to compact fluorescents and LED exit signs; reduced its annual water bill by $1,100 by installing two low-flow spray valves in its kitchen sinks; saved $3,000 a year on its electrical bill by installing a parking lot controller, and shaved $200 a year off its heating bill by installing 41 new energy-efficient windows.

-- Source: Manitoba Hydro

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition September 28, 2009 B6