Powering the Future: How Hamilton Health Sciences Put Cogeneration to Work for Healthcare

Ontario’s Energy Challenge Energy conservation and generation initiatives are becoming increasingly important in Ontario. More and more, organizations are being asked or even mandated to actively pursue energy-conservation strategies. Hospitals are no exception. Early last year, the Government of Ontario passed Bill 21, The Energy Conservation Responsibility Act, which will see the Ontario Power Authority assume responsibility for ensuring hospitals, universities and other municipal buildings participate in programs to increase conservation and demand management. Under this legislation, hospitals are required to prepare energyconservation strategies on a regular basis and report on energy consumption, proposed conservation measures and progress on achieving results. While social responsibility is an important component of energy conservation for hospitals, there is also the very real and immediate issue of ensuring that hospitals have access to a stable and uninterrupted power supply. In August 2003, this issue was highlighted when a series of power surges over a 12-second period triggered a cascade of shutdowns at more than 100 generating plants in eight US states and across Ontario. The result was the biggest blackout in North American history. Over 50 million people were affected, and 61,800 megawatts of power were lost (Independent Electricity System Operator 2003). The blackout tested the limits of emergency backup power within the province’s hospitals and drove home the need for alternative energy sources. Less than a year later, the Honourable Dwight Duncan (2004), Ontario’s energy minister, stated that if the province is going to keep pace with the demand for electricity, it “will need to refurbish, rebuild, replace or conserve 25,000 megawatts Abstract The absolute necessity of a stable and uninterrupted power supply within hospitals makes many of these facilities uniquely suited to cogeneration plants. Hamilton Health Sciences recently completed the largest hospital cogeneration project ever undertaken in the country. Spanning three acute care hospitals and generating a combined total of 22.75 megawatts of electricity, Hamilton Health Sciences’ cogeneration plants address energy supply issues by offering a clean and reliable power source completely within the hospital’s control, and provide the organization with the potential to generate its own revenue into the future by selling excess electricity back to the province. The following article highlights Hamilton Health Sciences’ approach to the project, including some important lessons learned, and may serve as an example for other publicly funded institutions interested in implementing similar projects. Ideas at Work