The Bioenergy Research and Demonstration Facility is expected to provide 12% of the varsity’s heat requirements, reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 5,000 tons per annum.
The facility uses tree trimmings and wood chips diverted from local landfills as biomass and is built in partnership with Nexterra Systems and GE.
UBC President Stephen Toope remarked that the facility provides a clean energy solution at a community scale.
GE Gas Engines North American general manager Roger George added, "With the successful start-up of our ecomagination-qualified GE Jenbacher gas engine at UBC, Nexterra is well on the road to delivering a renewable biomass combined heat-and-power solution that meets the demanding real-world reliability requirements of district energy providers and distributed power producers worldwide."
Funding for the facility included $13.7m from the Canadian Federal Government and $7m from the government of British Columbia.
