Orders

ORDER NUMBER

G-117-24

IN THE MATTER OF

the Utilities Commission Act, RSBC 1996, Chapter 473

and

Greater Vancouver Sewerage and Drainage District

Exemption under Section 88(3) of the Utilities Commission Act

BEFORE:

E. B. Lockhart, Panel Chair

W. E. Royle, Commissioner

on April 18, 2024

ORDER

WHEREAS:

A.      On April 4, 2024, the Greater Vancouver Sewerage and Drainage District (GVS&DD) filed an application (Exemption Application) with the British Columbia Utilities Commission (BCUC) pursuant to section 88(3) of the Utilities Commission Act (UCA) seeking approval for exemption from Part 3 of the UCA, excluding section 22, in respect of its planned project (Project) to recover waste heat from its domestic solid waste disposal facility in Burnaby, BC and deliver thermal energy to River District Energy Limited Partnership (RDE) for the River District Development (River District DEU) in Vancouver, BC;

B.      The GVS&DD is a body corporate and politic existing pursuant to the Greater Vancouver Sewerage and Drainage District Act for the provision of solid waste services, and operates the Waste-to-Energy Facility from which the Project will draw waste heat to generate thermal energy under a Thermal Energy Sale and Purchase Agreement (TESPA), dated December 14, 2021;

C.      In the Exemption Application, GVS&DD states that it intends to install equipment to recover waste heat from its Waste-to-Energy Facility, which it has operated since 1988, and deliver that waste heat to RDE via a closed-loop hot water pipeline system;

D.      GVS&DD will fall within the definition of a “public utility” under the UCA as a result of undertaking the Project and selling thermal energy to RDE; and

E.       The BCUC determines that the establishment of a public hearing process to review the Exemption Application is warranted.

NOW THEREFORE the BCUC orders as follows:

1.       A public hearing process is established to review the Exemption Application in accordance with the regulatory timetable as set out in Appendix A to this order.

2.       GVS&DD is directed to publish the public notice attached as Appendix B and a copy of this order on the Metro Vancouver website by no later than Friday, April 26, 2024.

3.       GVS&DD is directed, as soon as reasonably possible, but no later than Friday, April 26, 2024, to provide a copy of this order, the attached public notice and the Exemption Application, electronically where possible, to RDE, potentially affected First Nations, British Columbia Hydro Power and Authority (BC Hydro), and any other potentially affected parties.

4.       GVS&DD is directed to submit written confirmation of compliance with the notice requirements set out in Directives 2 and 3 above to the BCUC, including a list of all parties notified, by no later than Monday, April 29, 2024.

5.       In accordance with BCUC’s Rules of Practice and Procedure, parties who wish to participate in the proceeding may submit a letter of comment, in the form available on the BCUC’s website at: https://www.bcuc.com/Forms/LetterOfComment.

6.       Letters of comment must be submitted by the date established in the regulatory timetable attached as Appendix A to this order, and may be submitted via the BCUC’s website or by mail to the British Columbia Utilities Commission, Suite 410, 900 Howe Street, Vancouver, BC  V6Z 2N3.

DATED at the City of Vancouver, in the Province of British Columbia, this            18^th           day of April 2024.

BY ORDER

Original signed by:

E. B. Lockhart

Commissioner

Attachment

Greater Vancouver Sewerage and Drainage District

Exemption under Section 88(3) of the Utilities Commission Act

Greater Vancouver Sewerage and Drainage District
Exemption under Section 88(3) of the UCA

On April 4, 2024, the Greater Vancouver Sewerage and Drainage District filed an application with the British Columbia Utilities Commission pursuant to section 88(3) of the Utilities Commission Act seeking approval for exemption from Part 3 of the UCA, excluding section 22, in respect of its planned project to recover waste heat from its domestic solid waste disposal facility in Burnaby and deliver thermal energy to River District Energy Limited Partnership’s district energy facility for space heating and domestic water heating in the River District development community in Vancouver.

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