In 2023, Canada had 16 million households (total floorspace of 2.3 billion m2) which consumed an average of 26,201 kWh of secondary energy. Of that, 21,746 kWh (83%) was used for the thermal applications of space heating, water heating & space cooling. Each household emitted 3,622 kg of carbon, of which 3,196 kg (88%) was caused by thermal end uses.
A heat pump will produce that 21,746 kWh as thermal dispatchable (no batteries required) renewable energy, but will need 5,000 to 8,000 kWh of grid power to operate its multiple electro-mechanical components, depending on its COP / SEER rating.
Canada Energy Regulator says more than 800,000 residential heat pumps had been installed by 2023, of which 300,000 had received an incentive from the federal or a provincial government.
Assuming all heat pumps were optimally sized & properly installed, they produced 17.4 billion kWh of thermal renewable energy that year, and avoided the emission of 2.5 billion kg of climate-harming carbon emissions.
Despite these significant impacts, there are no reports which quantify this output, nor are the data reflected in any climate target.
Production of thermal renewable energy should be recognized. This 17 billion kWh of thermal from heat pumps compares to the output of 4.7 billion kWh from solar in 2023.
The undocumented production of renewable energy in the residential sector is impressive, but the potential output from Canada’s commercial-institutional sector is also massive. Toronto’s Deep Lake Water Cooling system eliminates 40 million kg of carbon each year, while the geothermal system beneath the University of Toronto reduces carbon emissions by 17 million kg, but neither system quantifies their production. The Canadian Museum of History has used a water-source heat pump for thermal conditioning for many years, and 23 km of geothermal boreholes have been drilled into Parliament Hill, but neither site has any signage and the only public mention of the latter was in the Senate newsletter.
If residential and CI sites were to quantify their production of renewable energy from heat pumps, it would facilitate a transition for incentives to be based on actual energy output (instead of price-skewing capital grants) which would encourage maximum system efficiency. A private installation may not want to release its energy or emission data if it could benefit a competitor, but these concerns should not apply to tax-funded heat pump installations.
Canadians are quick to criticize government when we think it is doing something wrong, but it is rare for politicians or bureaucrats to avoid the limelight when they do something that clearly is a positive initiative for our country. When they use our tax dollars to do the right thing for the right reason, they should explain it and receive the credit they deserve.
(Remember that any energy system should comply with the Rule of 3C)
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NetZeroPLUS Canada was incorporated to promote full transparency of energy production & consumption, as well as the concommitant emission of carbon. If a heat pump produces 22,000 kWh of renewable energy but consumes 6,000 kWh for its electro-mechanical components and another 5,000 kWh for lights & appliances, this means the home would
produce 22,000 / consume 11,000 / be classified as netzero PLUS
