ENMAX Opens Doors to World-Class Facility in the Heart of Downtown Calgary

For the first time in Calgary’s history, a district energy plant has fired up its boilers to produce heat for an extensive array of downtown buildings. The Calgary Downtown District Energy Centre on Ninth Avenue can provide heat for up to 10 million sq. ft. of new and existing residential and commercial buildings, eliminating the need for traditional boiler systems in individual buildings.

“We are bursting with pride over this new addition to the ENMAX generation portfolio,” said Gary Holden, President and CEO of ENMAX Corporation. “These types of facilities have been used in Europe for a long time and are now catching on in North America. They make good economic and environmental sense by consolidating the heating needs for several buildings all at once. It is definitely a modern approach to the needs of a growing city.”

The City of Calgary municipal building was the first structure to receive heat from the natural-gas fired facility. Through a network of insulated underground pipes, heat is transferred to City Hall--and ultimately future East Village buildings--eradicating the need for traditional heating systems. Consequently, The City prevented a costly replacement of its seven aging boilers.

The closed loop pipe system of the district energy facility delivers hot water, typically around 120 degrees Celsius, to the customer’s building and is connected to an energy transfer station in the customer's building which occupies significantly less space than a traditional heating system. The return water temperature is around 75 degrees Celsius.

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