Let nature improve your bottom line
Because of their exceptional efficiency, solar energy and geothermal systems are substantially less expensive to operate than traditional natural gas or electric commercial heating and cooling systems.
The cost savings available from a solar thermal and geothermal system depends on the heating and cooling requirements of your commercial building, local climate, energy costs, and building use.
Other heating costs can also be dramatically reduced by heat recovery. For example, heat removed from the building by air conditioning in the summer can be used to heat domestic hot water, swimming pools, hot tubs, or other parts of the facility.
The combination geo-exchange heating and cooling system as well as solar panels more than meets the energy needs of the new North Vancouver library
Real world savings
Solar and Geothermal systems typically cost 50% to 70% less to operate than traditional commercial systems. The simple payback (the period of years before the savings in annual operating costs exceed the initial premium of an installation) ranges from 3 to 12 years. In many cases installing a solar and geothermal system can result in positive cash flow from the first month of operation. Many utility companies also offer grants and rebates for buildings using solar thermal and geothermal systems.
To provide a real example of the cost savings from a solar thermal / geothermal system, we estimated the energy consumption for one of our recent commercial installations. The total savings over 10 years are $602,500.
Real world operating cost example:
- Building: 148 room Hotel
- Location: Kelowna, BC
- Heat and cooling Load: 9’889 GJ
- Solar and Geothermal System: 102 Solar panels (2002 year) and 50t Heat pump (installed May 2005)
- Conventional System: 85% efficient natural gas furnace and electrical air conditioning system
Note: Natural gas and electrical costs are based on Terasen Inc. and Fortis BC commercial rates as of February 2004. Projected annual increases are based on the average commercial rate change in Kelowna between 1992 and 2003
Energy consumption to heat and cool the building are based on annual averages and could vary with actual weather conditions experienced and the living habits of the occupants.