Small Business Lighting Program saving almost $58,000 annually for City of Ottawa

OTTAWA, Oct. 29, 2012 /CNW/ - The City of Ottawa is working with Hydro Ottawa to save electricity and reduce the operating costs at more than 100 city-owned facilities.  Since 2008, city facilities have reduced their annual electricity usage by almost 672,000 kilowatt hours while reducing their costs by almost $58,000 a year through the saveONenergy Small Business Lighting Program.

"This is a very effective program that is reducing costs for taxpayers while also reducing overall electricity usage," said Mayor Jim Watson.  "I am pleased that we now have more than 100 facilities participating, and I hope to see even more participation in the future."

"The energy savings in city-owned facilities that have participated in the saveONenergy Small Business Lighting Program could power 70 Ottawa homes for a year," said Bryce Conrad, President and CEO of Hydro Ottawa.  "These are great results, and we hope to extend the electricity and cost savings to all small businesses as more customers get to know the benefits of this efficiency program."

"The City has shown strong leadership in energy conservation by increasing efficiency in City owned buildings," said Councillor Maria McRae, Chair of the City's Environment Committee. "These efficiencies are saving money for taxpayers and are reducing our environmental footprint."

The program offers up to $1,000 of energy-efficient lighting and equipment upgrades to small businesses or facilities with an electricity demand of less than 50 kilowatts.

Hydro Ottawa performs a free energy assessment of the small business' lighting equipment, to identify specific opportunities for electricity efficient upgrades.

The $1,000 covers the new energy-efficient lighting and the cost of materials and labour. A licensed electrical contractor completes the upgrade and takes care of all clean up and recycling of materials.

Small businesses or facility managers who are interested in increasing their lighting efficiency and decreasing their operating costs can call Hydro Ottawa at 613-738-5474, or visit our website at: hydroottawa.com/lighting.

About Hydro Ottawa
Hydro Ottawa Holding Inc. (Hydro Ottawa) owns and operates two subsidiary companies, Hydro Ottawa Limited and Energy Ottawa Inc.  Hydro Ottawa Limited is the third-largest municipally-owned electrical utility in Ontario serving more than 305,000 customers in the City of Ottawa and the Village of Casselman. Energy Ottawa Inc., Ottawa's largest producer of green power, generates renewable energy and provides commercial energy management services.

SOURCE: Hydro Ottawa Holding

Claudia Lemieux
Manager, Public Affairs
Hydro Ottawa
Tel: [phone] ext. 7684
[email protected]

JP Rozon
Section Manager
Building & Technical Support
Public Works, City of Ottawa
Tel: [phone] ext. 43037
Mobile: [phone]