Enwave commissions expansion of Toronto’s Deep Lake Water Cooling System – ReNew Canada

Enwave Energy Corporation commissioned the Deep Lake Water Cooling (DLWC) System’s fourth intake expansion during a ceremony at their John Street Energy Centre. Enwave, in partnership with Toronto Water, is providing more buildings, owners, and operators in the city the opportunity to connect to Enwave’s sustainable energy system.

Enwave began construction on its expansion of the DLWC System in 2021, which has been in existence for twenty years. The project includes a three-kilometre pipe into Lake Ontario, which draws in water at four-degree Celsius temperatures and transports it to Enwave’s John Street Energy Centre through a newly built tunnel that extends under the harbour. The expansion has effectively increased its cooling capacity by 60 per cent, with the capability of providing service to an additional 40 buildings.

Servicing more than 100 buildings in downtown Toronto, DLWC is the world’s largest system of its kind, providing cooling to hospitals, commercial buildings, residential buildings, data centres, and entertainment venues. With the expansion, Enwave’s DLWC System is estimated to save 220 million gallons (832 million litres) of water annually—equivalent to nearly 350 Olympic size swimming pools—and avoids over 60 megawatts of peak electrical demand from Ontario’s grid.

By integrating with this system, participants actively contribute to the energy transition and decarbonization efforts, while benefiting from an essential service. The United Nations under its United 4 Sustainable Smart Cities (U4SSC) initiative published a case study of Enwave’s progressive DLWC System in A Guide to Circular Cities, citing the system’s accomplishment in achieving its objective to transform the way in which buildings are cooled to reduce environmental impact while providing value to the city and fostering economic development. This initiative significantly benefits the communities it services through reducing water consumption and operating costs, providing more predictable energy costs, and improving overall building resilience.

The DLWC System has been harnessed to create Enwave’s Green Heat program – a milestone expansion and renewal of facilities which enables Enwave to provide low-carbon heat to the world-renowned district energy grid servicing the city of Toronto’s downtown core. The Green Heat program allowed the Fairmont Royal York, a nearly 100-year-old historic building, to achieve net zero certification from the Canada Green Building Council (CaGBC).

Leveraging Toronto Water’s utility system, this innovative partnership has become an integral part of TransformTO, the city’s Climate Action Strategy, aiming to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 65% by 2030. This advancement actively mitigates climate change and supports Toronto developers in reaching their GHG reduction goals, while providing a cost-effective means to achieving compliance with the Toronto Green Standard.

“The expansion of our DLWC System is a significant milestone for both us and the city of Toronto,” said Carlyle Coutinho, CEO of Enwave Energy Corporation. “This unique partnership directly supports Toronto’s ambitious strategy to reduce GHG emissions overall and achieve net-zero emissions by 2040. We are proud to provide a system that contributes to these efforts in a meaningful way, while offering communities a viable path forward to reduce emissions, consumption and costs.”

“By expanding the Deep Lake Water Cooling System, Enwave is serving more people and cooling more buildings – while reducing emissions and helping us reach our climate goals,” said Toronto Mayor, Olivia Chow. “The City is grateful for Enwave’s continued partnership in providing this innovative, sustainable and climate-friendly cooling technology for people in Toronto. We look forward to the continued success and growth of the Deep Lake Water Cooling System.”

Understanding the enormous potential of this system, Enwave utilizes it uniquely to enhance other assets and services within its reach. In 2020, Enwave installed an 8.5 million-litre temperature-controlled tank underneath the lowest parking level of a three million square feet mixed use development named The Well. The innovative tank utilizes a thermal battery fed by the DLWC System, storing energy at night during off-peak times, and discharging during peak times, easing strain on the electricity grid and reducing overall costs.

“The expansion of the Deep Lake Water Cooling System is a significant achievement that reduces emissions while supporting economic growth with one of the cleanest grids in the world,” said Stephen Lecce, Ontario’s Minister of Energy and Electrification. “Ontario is forecasted to need to double the grid by 2050, so it is critical that we both conserve and generate additional clean, reliable and affordable energy for families and businesses.”

“In every corner of the province, innovative projects and technologies are being deployed to meet the energy needs of growing communities. This project by Enwave is a great example of innovation that will help reduce emissions while powering buildings and growing our economy. A big congratulations goes to all those who helped to make it a reality,” said Sam Oosterhoff, Associate Minister of Energy-Intensive Industries.

The DLWC System expansion project is supported financially by a grant from Canada’s Low Carbon Economy Fund, Champions Stream and a $600 million loan commitment supporting projects across Enwave’s portfolio, including the DLWC System, from the Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB) to accelerate the system’s expansion and scale.

Featured image: (L to R) Olivia Chow, Toronto Mayor; William Fernandes, acting deputy general manager, Toronto Water; Lou Di Gironimo, general manager, Toronto Water; Sam Oosterhoff, Associate Minister, Energy-Intensive Industries; and Carlyle Coutinho, CEO, Enwave Energy Corporation. (Enwave Energy)