In Edmonton, large commercial, institutional and industrial buildings use 23% of our energy and produce 19% of the city’s total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Therefore, addressing energy efficiency and reduced GHG emissions in these buildings is a critical component of transitioning to a low carbon, sustainable energy future.

And this transition doesn’t have to come at the cost of restricting markets or limiting economic development. Because these buildings have such a large impact, even small changes can have a big impact on emissions reductions. Retrofitting all of Edmonton’s commercial buildings with energy efficient upgrades has the potential to eliminate up to 39 million tonnes of GHGs by 2050.

To help building owners with these upgrades, the City of Edmonton provides a variety of rebates and programs.

The Building Energy Retrofit Accelerator (BERA) program is a new commercial energy transition program launched by the City under its Change Buildings for Climate series of energy transition programming. It takes a market transformation approach by incentivizing deep-green commercial energy efficiency retrofits in existing buildings and strengthening community leadership to help local energy transition. 

The City anticipates that $1 million dollars in commercial rebates can generate over $10 million in economic activity, acting as an important economic recovery and diversification catalyst for a city like Edmonton.

BERA complements existing commercial energy transition programs that are offered by the City of Edmonton, such as the Building Energy Benchmarking (BEB) and Corporate Climate Leaders Program (CCLP) that offer support for energy audits, benchmarking, energy efficiency planning and knowledge sharing.  In addition, BERA funding can be paired with SSRIA’s funding which gives Edmonton building owners the opportunity to integrate innovation with tried and true energy saving upgrades in their buildings.

With financial incentives for retrofit projects, participants benefit from short and long term cost savings and reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. Rebates are available for upgrades to HVAC systems, windows, lighting fixtures, building envelopes and much more. Additional bundling and energy certification bonuses are also available for deep green energy retrofits.

Not only are these measures good for the environment, they can offer the additional benefits of comfort, aesthetics and economic savings.

Learn more about the Change Buildings for Climate programs, or contact the BERA program coordinator at buildingretrofit@edmonton.ca.