Champion of Clean
Q&A with Jan Buijk
Valuing our industry’s trailblazers is vital. Proudly, WADE Canada has seven such mavericks on our board. Get to know the leadership team as we profile our own resident Champions of Clean as part DE News 2.0.
We sat down with WADE Canada’s Chair, Jan Buijk, to discuss his DE business, Canadian market drivers, and the profit in poop – cow manure actually. As a specialist in cogeneration, he’s busy developing energy solutions for dairy farms and community centres. Here’s what May’s Champion of Clean had so say.
First Jan, tell us about European Power Systems Ltd.; what do you provide and for whom?
European Power Systems Ltd (EPS) is based in Mississauga, ON offering energy solutions with ‘best in class’ gas engine technology. We offer our clients feasibility analysis, sales, plant operation and service support.
The CHP market is where we shine most. EPS has Canadian distribution rights for two compelling technologies:
My first job (in 1984) was to design the engine room layout for a 3 MW cogeneration system for a hospital in Utrecht, the Netherlands. This is where I think I caught the ‘cogen bug’. I am fortunate that ever since I have been able to dedicate my career to this exciting technology and its applications.
For the next 10 years, I believe that DE can become a mainstream energy technology in the Canadian market. Market conditions are starting to favour local generation and there is an increased recognition of the important role that renewables and efficient, clean CHP systems can play in order to help fight climate change. EPS is well positioned to become one of the major players in the Canadian CHP market.
What would you say are the strongest DE market opportunities for EPS in Canada?
EPS has two primary market opportunities, namely: renewables, specifically biogas; and secondly, cogeneration with natural gas.
How do market conditions support your business model?
For our biogas business, Ontario’s feed-in tariff program (other Provinces are developing similar programs) creates incentives for our clients to invest in onsite power generation.
For our cogeneration business, our products and services have become attractive solutions for our clients due to three market conditions: decreases in natural gas prices, increases in electricity prices, and a growing sense of environmental stewardship.
Let’s talk manure - and your biogas business. Dairy farms are one of your primary clients. How does EPS add value to their business?
Absolutely right. We often work with dairy farmers who are fiscally motivated to manage the organic waste materials on their farms. In a digester, manure from their farm is mixed with other organic materials and sometimes fat, oil and grease to produce biogas, which fuels our gas engines. The power produced by the digester is sold back to the grid under a feed-in-tariff program and the heat recovered from the engine in turn powers the barn, farmhouse and the digester itself. Where do we come in? We connect the digester to our cogeneration equipment, which we connect to the grid. Our core business is gas-to-grid, which makes financial and environmental sense for our clients.
You’re also helping communities rely less on the grid. How is your cogeneration business helping communities accomplish this?
We often work with buildings that require a great deal of gas and electricity to operate. Recently, we were hired by the City of Guelph to supply a cogeneration system for their West End Community Centre. They provide the community with a swimming pool, library, ice rink, and restaurant. By installing our 2G Cogeneration System, their energy costs will be significantly reduced and their carbon footprint is less. Win win.
How does membership with WADE Canada translate to value for EPS?
WADE Canada is the voice of decentralized energy in Canada, offering its members the capacity to grow their business – for us, their program development for distributed generation projects has influenced our growth. EPS has been an active member of WADE Canada since its inception and is currently involved with two projects that have resulted directly from WADE Canada’s support.
And finally, who do you deem a top DE trailblazer in Canada and why?
One of the people that I tremendously respect and admire is Bruce Ander, Chair of the CDEA and President of Markham District Energy. Bruce has been unwavering in his commitment to DE and is the driving force behind the development and expansion of the Markham District Energy System. This state of the art system is a fantastic example of what can be achieved in the Canadian market when people have the right vision, leadership and community support.
Jan Buijk is founder and co-owner of EPS Ltd. Jan has had engineering, project management, direct sales and marketing responsibilities for more than 100 gas engine based renewable energy, CHP, district energy, and other distributed generation projects in Canada and the Netherlands.
Jan is widely respected in the DG industry, is a former director of the CDEA and OSEA, holds a directorship positions with APPrO and is Chair of WADE Canada.
Contact Jan at jbuijk@wadecanada.ca.
European Power Systems Ltd (EPS) is based in Mississauga, ON offering energy solutions with ‘best in class’ gas engine technology. We offer our clients feasibility analysis, sales, plant operation and service support.
The CHP market is where we shine most. EPS has Canadian distribution rights for two compelling technologies:
- 2G Cogeneration Systems, a completely functional system, uniquely packaged into a single module. The package includes heat recovery, gas valve train, starting system, pumps and thermostatic controls.
- Capstone Microturbines can operate on a variety of gaseous and liquid fuels and emit very low emissions, making Capstone a unique, clean, green, reliable source of energy.
My first job (in 1984) was to design the engine room layout for a 3 MW cogeneration system for a hospital in Utrecht, the Netherlands. This is where I think I caught the ‘cogen bug’. I am fortunate that ever since I have been able to dedicate my career to this exciting technology and its applications.
For the next 10 years, I believe that DE can become a mainstream energy technology in the Canadian market. Market conditions are starting to favour local generation and there is an increased recognition of the important role that renewables and efficient, clean CHP systems can play in order to help fight climate change. EPS is well positioned to become one of the major players in the Canadian CHP market.
What would you say are the strongest DE market opportunities for EPS in Canada?
EPS has two primary market opportunities, namely: renewables, specifically biogas; and secondly, cogeneration with natural gas.
For our biogas business, Ontario’s feed-in tariff program (other Provinces are developing similar programs) creates incentives for our clients to invest in onsite power generation.
For our cogeneration business, our products and services have become attractive solutions for our clients due to three market conditions: decreases in natural gas prices, increases in electricity prices, and a growing sense of environmental stewardship.
Let’s talk manure - and your biogas business. Dairy farms are one of your primary clients. How does EPS add value to their business?
Absolutely right. We often work with dairy farmers who are fiscally motivated to manage the organic waste materials on their farms. In a digester, manure from their farm is mixed with other organic materials and sometimes fat, oil and grease to produce biogas, which fuels our gas engines. The power produced by the digester is sold back to the grid under a feed-in-tariff program and the heat recovered from the engine in turn powers the barn, farmhouse and the digester itself. Where do we come in? We connect the digester to our cogeneration equipment, which we connect to the grid. Our core business is gas-to-grid, which makes financial and environmental sense for our clients.
You’re also helping communities rely less on the grid. How is your cogeneration business helping communities accomplish this?
We often work with buildings that require a great deal of gas and electricity to operate. Recently, we were hired by the City of Guelph to supply a cogeneration system for their West End Community Centre. They provide the community with a swimming pool, library, ice rink, and restaurant. By installing our 2G Cogeneration System, their energy costs will be significantly reduced and their carbon footprint is less. Win win.
How does membership with WADE Canada translate to value for EPS?
WADE Canada is the voice of decentralized energy in Canada, offering its members the capacity to grow their business – for us, their program development for distributed generation projects has influenced our growth. EPS has been an active member of WADE Canada since its inception and is currently involved with two projects that have resulted directly from WADE Canada’s support.
And finally, who do you deem a top DE trailblazer in Canada and why?
One of the people that I tremendously respect and admire is Bruce Ander, Chair of the CDEA and President of Markham District Energy. Bruce has been unwavering in his commitment to DE and is the driving force behind the development and expansion of the Markham District Energy System. This state of the art system is a fantastic example of what can be achieved in the Canadian market when people have the right vision, leadership and community support.
Jan Buijk is founder and co-owner of EPS Ltd. Jan has had engineering, project management, direct sales and marketing responsibilities for more than 100 gas engine based renewable energy, CHP, district energy, and other distributed generation projects in Canada and the Netherlands.
Jan is widely respected in the DG industry, is a former director of the CDEA and OSEA, holds a directorship positions with APPrO and is Chair of WADE Canada.
Contact Jan at jbuijk@wadecanada.ca.
