Prince Edward Island invests in biomass heating unit at Community Hospital in O'Leary that will use locally sourced woodchips; U.S.-based Wood4Heating slated to install similar systems in two other P.E.I. government buildings
Allison Oesterle
CHARLOTTETOWN, Prince Edward Island
,
March 30, 2012
(press release)
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The addition of a new biomass heating unit at Community Hospital in O’Leary will result in reduced spending on fuel and will shrink the facility’s carbon footprint by using a clean-burning, sustainable resource, says Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal Robert Vessey.
“The province is very excited to see the new biomass heating unit up and running at Community Hospital,” said Minister Vessey. “Not only will the new unit reduce the province’s reliance on fossil fuels and its overall carbon footprint, but the unit will also provide a stabilizing boost to the Island’s forestry industry which has seen its share of hard times over the past few years.”
Community Hospital is the first of three government-owned facilities being equipped with the new wood-chip boiler systems provided by Wood4Heating. Bluefield and Three Oaks high schools will also be equipped with new boilers in the coming months. Under a different contract, another company will provide new units at M.E. Callaghan and Hernewood Schools.
The new boiler at Community Hospital is owned and operated by Wood4Heating. The company will purchase locally sourced wood chips and have them delivered to the facility. The province will pay Wood4Heating based on the amount of heat consumed.
“We are proud to have been selected to provide heat to Community Hospital to be able to showcase the first installation on the Island,” said Holger Mannweiler, CEO of Wood4Heating. “We have installed cutting edge boiler technology from Austrian biomass boiler market leader Binder whose systems are known for reliability efficiency and low emissions. The long-term fixed price contract heat arrangement in place at this facility offers the province not only significant savings but also very high predictability of future heating costs while protecting the environment and supporting the local economy.”
Once all five units are in place, the province expects to save approximately $175,000 per year based on the current price of heating oil. The new units will also reduce carbon emissions by approximately 2,500 tonnes per year.
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