The Project

Project Overview

First and foremost, this is a community project. If constructed, the heat network would be owned by the community – either the municipality or a community cooperative – and will not move forward with your support.

The primary aim of the feasibility study is to determine if biomass district energy could reduce heating costs for homes and business in New Glasgow. The study will help the community to understand the economics, decide which areas should be connected, and assess options for biomass sourcing and system ownership.

Biomass district energy is:

LOCAL – Using local biomass fuel means that your Town would not be dependent on imported heating fuels. Instead, the money you spend to heat your home will support your local economy.

AFFORDABLE – Future oil and electricity rates in Nova Scotia are uncertain and expected to rise. Biomass fuel can be secured through long-term contracts, stabilizing and reducing heating costs.

RELIABLE – Existing biomass district energy plants operate with >99% uptime and underground pipes mean that the distribution network is not exposed to the elements, reducing the risk of outages.

CLEAN – Using modern technology, the pollutants released from the bioenergy plant would be about equivalent to one wood stove, reducing air pollution compared to the many oil furnaces replaced.

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**Early concept of the New Glasgow Community Heat Network**

Our team

As project manager, TorchLight will coordinate all activities, lead community engagements and develop the Masterplan.

TorchLight is Canada’s leading bioenergy consulting and project management firm and has championed bioheat and district energy development across Canada.

Jamie Stephen, Founder and Managing Director, and Jean Blair, Director of Planning and Outreach, are the primary team members for this project.

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Rathco ENG will lead the engineering design and costing for the district energy network and provide technical input for the Masterplan.

Rathco is a multidisciplinary engineering and planning firm, specializing in district energy. Their team has international best practice experience in district energy including energy generation, distribution, and storage.

John Rathbone, Founder and President, and Mairead Kennedy, Vice President and Network Design Engineer, are the primary team members for this project.

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The Town will support TorchLight and Rathco in the completion of the study and will ensure the plan meets the needs of the community.

As the economic and cultural hub of Pictou County, the Town of New Glasgow is committed to ambitious climate action and was one of Canada’s first municipalities to prepare a climate plan. This plan was recently updated, with district energy playing a central role in decarbonization. The Town has been meeting regularly with TorchLight since fall 2020 to develop a plan to move the feasibility study for a community wide district energy network forward.

The Town of New Glasgow’s financial contribution will go toward the energy and mechanical assessment of buildings to be connected in the initial phase.

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Forestry Advisors

The FNSWO will engage with local private woodlot owners to help us understand where biomass might come from and them understand how biomass fits within their sustainable forest management plans.

Founded in 2001, the Federation of Nova Scotia Woodlot Owners (FNSWO) is a province wide, non-profit organization providing forest management, support, and advocacy to Nova Scotia’s small private woodland owners. FNSWO’s members are stewards of woodlands that care deeply about the future and sustainability of the forest and landscape.

Since 2009, the FNSWO has been building a Forest Certification Program for private woodlot owners.

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ACFOR will provide guidance on active forest management in the Acadian forest and advice on biomass supply for the district energy system.

ACFOR Forestry Management offers an alternative solution for woodlot owners who want value from their forest, want to preserve it, and who are struggling between clear-cutting and conservation. ACFOR’s mission is to restore forests, create better, local, renewable energy systems and empower communities for today and tomorrow.

ACFOR’s bioheat projects have led to the replacement of over 700,000 L of heating oil annually with local sustainable wood chips.

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The Process

2021 – 2022

Secure Funding for a Feasibility Study (complete)

This step has already been completed! With support from the Town of New Glasgow, TorchLight Bioresources led the submission of a successful application to the Government of Canada’s SREP Program (Capacity Building Stream) for a feasibility study for a community-wide district heating network.

In Spring of 2022, federal funding was secured to study the feasibility of a community-wide district heat network fueled by a biomass combined heat and power (CHP) plant and large scale, wind powered, heat pump in the Town of New Glasgow.

Completion of a district energy feasibility study by 2023 is a stated goal for the Buildings Sector in the Town’s 2022 Climate Action Plan. As such, the Town is also contributing $30,000 to the study, which will be used for mechanical and energy assessments of several large buildings in the community to be carried out by a local company.

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2022 – 2023

Complete Feasibility Study (In Progress)

The aim of the feasibility study is ultimately to understand whether or not the project is economically viable for, and desired by, your community. The technology is proven but we need to understand the costs to construct and operate the system in New Glasgow to understand if heat can be delivered to you – the customer – at an affordable price.

The study will involve: mapping all homes and buildings and working with building owners to understand heat loads and mechanical systems; preliminary energy centre and network design and engineering; working with local land owners and forest operators to understand biomass supply impacts and cost; an overview of ownership options and preliminary utility plan; and an estimation of the capital cost and delivered heat cost.

The study will include a detailed engineering design for the initial phase of the network as well as a Zoned Masterplan for phased build-out of the community-wide district energy network.

Throughout this process there will be lots of opportunity for you, as a community member, to weigh in. We want to make sure we understand your priorities and concerns so they can be addressed through the system design and planning.

The completion of a feasibility study is a pre-requisite to apply for infrastructure funding from the Federal Government.

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2023 – 2024

Secure Infrastructure Funding

If the community biomass district energy system is shown to be economically viable through the feasibility study, and is desired by the community, the next step is to apply to the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program (ICIP) for capital funding for the first phase of the project.

Through the Green Stream of the ICIP, the New Glasgow Community District Energy Project would be eligible for up to 73.3% of initial construction costs to be covered by the Federal and Provincial Governments. Support from higher levels of government makes a project of this scale possible in your small community.

If the decision is made to move forward, TorchLight will lead the community through the ICIP funding application process. At this point, TorchLight will also lead the process to secure a partner(s) to build and operate the biomass CHP plant and wind turbines.

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2024 – 2027

Construct Bioenergy Plant and Phase 1 of Heat Network

Once infrastructure funding is secured, a public tender would be released for the construction of the network and initial biomass energy centre. The successful proponent would complete a final engineered design for Phase One of the network based on the design in the feasibility study. Working with local contractors and skilled trades workers, build-out of the district network and biomass energy centre will begin.

If all goes smoothly, groundbreaking on the district energy network would happen sometime in early spring of 2025, once the design as been approved and permits have been obtained. Because district energy and community-scale biomass heating is not well-developed in Canada, the process could take longer – but this also means that New Glasgow will be on the leading edge of the energy transition and a showcase for other communities.

The zones(s) to be built out during Phase One will be confirmed through the feasibility study but will most likely be centered around downtown.

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2027 +

Build Out Network in Phases and Increase Energy Centre Capacity

The district energy network will be built out in phases over several years according to the Masterplan developed through the feasibility study.

The capacity of the bioenergy plant will be expanded to coincide with network build-out to include electricity generation, making it a combined heat and power (CHP) plant. Heat only boilers would be added to meet peak heat demand.

“Behind-the-meter” wind turbines, that directly power a heat pump that heats the network, may be added as a secondary, low cost, renewable heat source for the Town of New Glasgow’s growing heat network.

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Take a Survey

Have your voice heard! Tell us what you know and how you feel about bioheat and
district energy in your community, or about how forests in Nova Scotia are managed.

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