Photo by Whitehorse Star
Council ponders work to upgrade CGC system
City administration is recommending a $494,333 contract be awarded to upgrade the heat recovery system at the Canada Games Centre.
City administration is recommending a $494,333 contract be awarded to upgrade the heat recovery system at the Canada Games Centre.
Administration is recommending the contract be awarded to Whitehorse company Budget Plumbing and Heating.
Council will vote on the recommendation at next Monday’s meeting.
“This upgrade will allow waste heat from the ice rink refrigeration system to be delivered to two additional areas in the CGC, reducing energy costs, heating oil consumption, and greenhouse gas emissions,” says the administrative report presented to council on Monday.
The report says the upgrade will result in heating fuel savings of 95,000 litres per year and energy cost savings of $85,000 annually.
Greenhouse gas emissions are expected to be reduced by 252 tonnes annually, or 3.6 per cent below below the city’s GHG emissions in 2019.
The work, however, did come in substantially above the original estimate, requiring council to make an adjustment of $200,000 to the city’s capital budget. The project is being funded by federal gas tax money.
“Fortunately, higher-than-expected cost savings and GHG reductions indicated that the project was still viable with an improved payback period,” says the report.
The payback period is estimated at 7.7 years.
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Comments (1)
Up 3 Down 0
Max Mack on Nov 22, 2020 at 8:25 pm
City administration and council have no shame.
A half-million to "upgrade" the current heat recovery system with over-the-top claims about how much energy will be saved and CO2 reduced . . . blah, blah, blah.
By the time the final price tag comes in, with cost-plus add-ons and inflationary increases and side projects not included in the main estimate, I'm betting this little scam will come in at over $700k. Payback in 7.7 years? Total fiction. Probably more like 20. But, let's play their game.
What's straight-line depreciation on $700K over 8 years? That's right . . . $87,500 per year. Even if "payback" happened in 8 years (extremely unlikely), the cost "savings" will be completely eaten up by depreciation expense. This is before maintenance, operating costs and other improvements . . .
Look for CGC fees or taxes to increase yet again.