Hydro Ottawa energizes first lower-carbon substation, setting a new design standard for a growing grid

OTTAWA, ON, Sept. 23, 2026 /CNW/ — Hydro Ottawa Limited has officially energized the Piperville municipal transformer station (MTS), its first substation built using lower-carbon design. This state-of-the-art facility will serve customers in southeast Ottawa with 90 megawatts of power, matching the capacity of Hydro Ottawa’s largest existing station (Cambrian MTS, 2022) while achieving a 12.3 per cent reduction in embodied carbon emissions. Designed to minimize environmental impact without compromising power quality, this lower-carbon substation secures the critical infrastructure required to power the region’s rapid growth.

Piperville’s climate benefits were achieved through a lower-carbon design that focused on reducing the substation’s “embodied emissions,” the greenhouse gas footprint created from the materials and construction processes of the physical building before it is even turned on. By utilizing sustainable materials like lower-carbon concrete and optimizing its engineering to build a more compact layout that used less raw material, the project eliminated 618 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) compared to Cambrian MTS, Hydro Ottawa’s baseline reference.

For local residents and businesses, the new station delivers direct long-term community benefits. It provides increased system redundancy to help mitigate the impacts of severe weather events, and its added capacity supports local economic opportunity by powering new residential developments, commercial expansions and major municipal transit electrification. Looking ahead, the station’s modern infrastructure lays the foundation to integrate future clean energy innovations, including rooftop solar generation and battery energy storage systems, directly into the local grid.

As part of Hydro Ottawa’s broader commitment to sustainability, innovation and delivering safe, reliable power, the Piperville MTS establishes a repeatable lower-carbon design  benchmark that will be applied to all new major municipal transformer station developments. With electricity demand projected to increase significantly over the coming decades, this new standard is already embedded in the design and construction of Hydro Ottawa’s upcoming stations, as we are on track to energize a new one nearly every year until 2030.

Quick facts

• Carbon baseline reference: Uses Cambrian MTS as Hydro Ottawa’s official baseline CO2e reference facility for measuring lower-carbon performance, selected due to its similar footprint and 27.6 kV capacity

• Controllable lifecycle emissions: A lower-carbon design focuses specifically on embodied carbon, which represents the primary lifecycle emissions Hydro Ottawa can directly control as a utility through engineering and design choices–unlike operational or downstream emissions. As a first-of-its-kind proof of concept for the city, this design approach establishes a baseline for actionable innovation, with progressively greater reductions expected as new lower-carbon technologies emerge.

• Embodied emission breakdown: Embodied emissions stem from three distinct areas: the physical building, the station yard, and the power equipment. Overall, Hydro Ottawa’s lower-carbon design saved a total of 618 tonnes of CO2e driven by reducing physical building emissions by 508 tonnes through optimized building design and yard emissions by 202 tonnes through the use of more sustainable raw materials, offsetting a 92-tonne increase from heavier power equipment.

• Future ready: Prepares the distribution network to connect and support distributed energy resources like rooftop solar generation and battery energy storage systems directly into the local grid.

• Repeatable benchmark for upcoming substation: Establishes a repeatable lower-carbon design standard for Hydro Ottawa’s pipeline of new substations, including Hydro Road and Mer-Bleue scheduled for 2027, and Old Second Line and Greenbank in 2028, as the utility prepares to energize multiple stations through 2030.

Quote

“Every single day, Ottawa is growing and our community’s energy needs are evolving. This facility proves that we do not have to choose between meeting the city’s growing energy demands or reducing our carbon footprint. We can do both. Piperville is a shining example that we can build a stronger, more resilient grid while remaining deeply committed to environmental stewardship and a sustainable future.”

– Bryce Conrad, President and Chief Executive Officer

About Hydro Ottawa Limited

Hydro Ottawa Limited, a subsidiary of Hydro Ottawa Holding Inc. [‘Hydro Ottawa Group’], powers more than 377,000 homes and businesses across Ottawa and Casselman. For more than a century, the company has been dedicated to delivering clean, safe and reliable electricity, playing a vital role in shaping a vibrant and sustainable National Capital Region. As a key partner in building a dynamic energy future, Hydro Ottawa Limited is committed to the well-being of the communities it serves, and guiding its customers through the energy transition. This includes delivering modern services, integrating innovative technologies, pioneering sustainable solutions, and being a trusted source of information and education in our evolving energy landscape.

Learn more: hydroottawa.com

SOURCE Hydro Ottawa