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Client Profile: Trent Rapids Power Corporation

For more than 85 years the Peterborough Utilities Commission operated as a non-profit organization providing  electricity and water to the City of Peterborough.  A restructuring in 2000 saw the birth of the Peterborough Utilities Group charged with maintaining the city’s safe and reliable supply of water and electricity.

Trent Rapids Power CorpThe Project

As part of the restructuring, Peterborough Utilities Inc. (PUI) was created to manage electrical generation facilities, rental equipment and provide metering services to area residents. Its mandate of building profitable, renewable generation stations that reduce greenhouse gas emissions remains a key focus.

With a population of over 75,000 people, a growth rate of 300 homes per year and a wealth of rivers and lakes, Peterborough is an ideal location for the development of renewable energy projects.

In 2008 PUI formed the Trent Rapids Power Corporation (TRPC) to develop a  hydroelectric generating facility on the Otonabee River in Peterborough.  The Robert G. Lake Generating Station was located on the west bank of the Otonabee River near Locks 22 and 23, near Trent University.  The project would provide many benefits to the environment and the Peterborough community.

The facility was designed to divert water from above Lock 23 via a canal to a generating facility below Lock 22, producing approximately 8.0 megawatts (MW) of electricity. The “run-of-the river” hydroelectric generating station consists of two 4.0 MW ECOBulbTM turbines, a 44 kilovolt (kV) substation and a power line which injects energy into the local electricity distribution grid. 

The Solution

For the long-term financing of this important project, Trent Rapids Power Corporation turned to Infrastructure Ontario (IO) for debt financing in the amount of  $32,400,000.

“We are pleased to have worked with Infrastructure Ontario in the financing of this key project for the Peterborough community. IO readily understood our needs and was able to deliver the right solution for our project.  We strongly believe that our relationship with IO has created significant value for TRPC and the community, and we look forward to working together again in the future.”

John Stevenson, CFO & VP Corporate Services

The Result

With the help of IO, the Robert G. Lake Generating Station was declared in-service December 31, 2009.  Named after the former long-time General Manager and President of the Peterborough Utilities Group, Bob Lake, the eight megawatt hydroelectric generating station will produce and inject approximately 31,000 megawatt hours (MWh) annually into the local electricity grid.  The new station will be able to provide the electricity needs for approximately 3,000 homes and will also offset 20,000 to 30,000 tons of carbon dioxide annually. The project provides a great benefit to the community by selling green energy back into the grid.

For more information on the client please visit their website www.pui.ca