By Patrick Longchamps
Major energy leaders for the college were on campus to speak about the new ESCO two contract that creates a more sustainable energy future for the college Jan. 21.
Speeches were given in the A-building, one of the oldest buildings in the college. President of the college, Kent MacDonald, President of Siemens Canada, Robert Hardt and Ontario Minister of Energy, Bob Chiarelli were the main presenters.
The topic of the presentation was the second ESCO contract that will save the college around $20 million, a $1.1 million annual saving before all phases are done and a $3.8 million savings after.
“We both understand that significant technological growth doesn’t happen overnight, but rather with long-term planning. This is the only way to see real growth,” said Hardt.
The new 20 year contract will be targeting new technology around the school to create a more sustainable source of energy.
The savings created by the improvements will finance the project’s cost. This provides the college with a way to pay for new technology without capital funding. It also allows the college to put money saved into the classrooms.
“It saves us nearly $20 million in capital infrastructure. That is a win-win-win situation. It’s a win for our government partners, it’s a win for our private sector partner and it fundamentally allows us to deliver what we are good at: education and training,” said MacDonald.
All three institutions agree that, the partnership is one of the best ways to teach the students a more sustainable way of living and continue attempting to advance these technologies.
“It’s a contract but really it’s more than that. It’s really a partnership for Siemens and the college,” said Chiarelli. “We are happy that Algonquin is teaching students sustainability.”
Siemens Canada has been working with the province for 100 years. They are being named one of the most sustainable cooperation’s in the world by the World Economic Forum in Switzerland.
This will be the second contract between Siemens and the college, the first from 2007. The original contract didn’t go over-budget and provided the school with new buildings.
“The newest contract is the most ambitious project that Siemens Canada has ever undertaken during our time in Canada,” said Hardt.