Ottawa Releases $9 M for Solar Hot Water Pilot

[jpak]

http://www.renewableaccess.com/rea/news/story?id=49980

There is visible excitement at Natural Resources Canada about the announcement of funding to accelerate solar hot water across the country. "It's going to be a revolution. It's going to change the dynamics of the water heating marketplace in Canada," said one ministry spokesperson.

The pilot program is part of the Conservative government's recently announced ecoEnergy programs, initiatives meant to combat climate change and boost Canadian innovation. The program has several categories, including ecoEnergy Renewable Heat (which contains the solar hot water pilot), ecoEnergy Renewable Energy, ecoEnergy Biofuels, ecoEnergy Efficiency, and others.

The Renewable Energy and Heat elements of the program together account for $1.5 billion in funding, with the Heat portion slated to receive $36 million over the next four years. It is divided into two parts, namely a 25% rebate for commercial, industrial, and institutional installations, and pilot programs that will assist utilities, local governments, NGOs and buyer co-operatives accelerate residential solar hot water installations.

Natural Resource Canada's website contains an estimate that 700 commercial and industrial buildings will receive rebates for solar hot water systems through the program by 2011. It also estimates that several thousand homes could receive systems as a result of the residential participation.

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