
Thunder Bay solar projects
Transforming unused space into 20 years of green, renewable energy
Thunder Bay Hydro Electricity Distribution Inc.
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Canada
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2012 - 2013
6 rooftop solar installations.
83,000 ft2 of otherwise unused roof space.
685-kW power generation.
Challenges
- The existing buildings were not designed for solar panel loads.
- The projects were located on public buildings being used daily.
- Due to the projects' northern location, panel arrangements needed to be designed to maximize annual power output.
- The arrangement was carefully designed to factor in winter snow removal.
Solutions
- Carefully analyzed the arrangement of panels to maximize roof coverage without exceeding the structural design limits of the existing buildings.
- Strong management and careful planning ensured the site work did not interfere with ongoing building activities.
- Conducted extensive simulations to ensure panel arrangements and set out angles to maximize annual output, taking into account roof layout and building location.
- Selected the mounting system to allow safe and easy snow removal. Arranged the system to minimize the impact of snow on energy output.
Highlights
- Completed projects safely, achieving the Hatch goal of “no harm”.
- There were no disruptions to daily building operations or public access to buildings.
- Six installations were completed within the original budget and in accordance with the project schedule.
- The installations were designed to generate approximately 394 megawatt hours of electricity per year—enough to power 36 homes.
- Thunder Bay Hydro will sell the generated electricity to the Ontario Power Authority under a 20-year Feed-In Tariff program (FIT) contract. The electricity will be distributed to the provincial grid.
Project numbers
C$3.6 million20-year Feed-In-Tariff Program contract