Zibi to become National Capital Region’s first carbon-neutral community thanks to innovative partnership with Hydro Ottawa and Kruger Products

The Zibi Community Utility positions the region as a leader in combating climate change

A new partnership between Zibi, Hydro Ottawa and Kruger Products will put the National Capital Region on the map as a leader in combating climate change through the substantial reduction of carbon emissions using district energy for heating and cooling in the Zibi community. Zibi is being developed by Dream Unlimited Corp (TSX:DRM), Dream Hard Asset Alternatives Trust (TSX:DRA.UN), and Theia Partners.

The Zibi Community Utility is a District Energy System relying on energy recovery from effluents from Kruger Products’ Gatineau Plant for heating, and the Ottawa River for cooling. The system, developed by Zibi, will provide zero carbon heating and cooling for all Zibi tenants and residents in the 34-acre waterfront city. Zibi residents and tenants will be able to take pride in living and working in one of Canada’s most sustainable communities, and realize energy savings by using a temperature controlling application on their mobile devices.

This innovative system – the first in North America to use post-industrial waste heat recovery in a master-planned community – will make Zibi the region’s first zero-carbon-emission community.

How the system works

When completed, all 4 million square feet of residential and commercial buildings at Zibi will be interconnected through a hydronic loop that will deliver heating and cooling energy. A first in North America, low-grade heat from effluents will be recovered from the end of the tissue-making process from the neighbouring Kruger Products’ Gatineau tissue plant and injected into the new central energy plant. In the summer, heat will be rejected through chillers into the Ottawa River to efficiently produce chilled water to cool the buildings.

When it first comes online in 2021, the Zibi Community Utility plant, located on the lower level of a residential building on the Gatineau side, will be accessible to residents and visitors to allow them see the operations and learn about the innovative technology.

Learn more about the ZCU District Energy System (DES)

Zibi, a model of innovation

In addition to introducing district energy, a creative partnership with telecom company Beanfield will use the energy system pipe corridors to lay infrastructure for their fibre-optic network and offer 1Gbps symmetrical upload and download speeds delivered over a dedicated fibre connection. Through this partnership, reliable and affordable Internet, Phone, and TV services will be provided to all Zibi residents and businesses, as well as free wifi in public spaces, making Zibi one of Canada’s most technologically advanced communities.

A partnership that works for all

The Zibi, Hydro Ottawa and Kruger Products partnership is a first in the region, creating a model for zero-carbon district energy, and helping both the City of Ottawa and la Ville de Gatineau meet their climate goals.

Through this partnership, Hydro Ottawa provides more than 100 years of trusted utility experience and will work to integrate innovative clean energy solutions into the Zibi project in support of the group’s One Planet Action Plan, which focuses on zero-carbon and zero-waste development, among other sustainable benefits.