Rebate Helps BC Public Housing Providers Lower Gas Bills

FortisBC, British Columbia’s largest natural gas and energy provider, has introduced a rebate that will allow multi-unit public housing buildings to decrease gas consumption, improve heat efficiency, lower energy costs and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 15%.

The upfront rebate of $200 per gallon applies to the one-time treatment cost of an affordable chemical additive, EndoTherm®, which improves heat transfer in HVAC boiler systems. Enhanced heat transfer allows the system to operate at higher efficiency without new equipment, tenant participation, or downtime. Pace, the provider of EndoTherm®, assists in most of the paperwork plus provides the installation but the rebate is paid directly back to the customer from FortisBC.

FortisBC reviewed dozens of EndoTherm® case studies, including several public housing buildings, to validate the effectiveness and cost savings to customers. On average, the case studies confirmed a 8-17% savings with simple paybacks ranging from one to three years. EndoTherm® is a 100% organic closed loop additive which has been used for over a decade in more than 100,000 applications world-wide.

Pace, a Canadian company headquartered in BC, has worked with several non-profits, property managers, universities, municipalities and school districts to demonstrate the effectiveness of EndoTherm®. One example is BC Housing, an affordable housing provider, which hired a 3rd party auditor to conduct a measurement and verification pilot program using EndoTherm® in twelve buildings.

“I was skeptical of EndoTherm® at first,” said Bill MacKinnon, Senior Manager of Energy & Sustainability at BC Housing.  “BC Housing decided to try a pilot of the product in twelve of our buildings. We realized 5%-8.4% heating energy savings of over the course of our study resulting in a 2.7 – 4.5 year payback,”

That equates to natural gas savings of $19,000 per year with an annual reduction in carbon emissions by 118 tonnes per year, equivalent to removing the annual emissions of 25 passenger vehicles. According to Stats Canada, 39% of all greenhouse gas emissions come from buildings. The vast majority of those emissions in BC are generated by natural gas consumed for space heating. By reducing boiler gas consumption, buildings directly reduce greenhouse gas and carbon emissions. Pace also offers EndoTherm as part of its Eco Program, which reduces maintenance costs and protects the system by providing water quality testing, water treatment for corrosion protection and regular site services.

If your building is in BC, it might be eligible for the rebate from FortisBC on EndoTherm®.