1. Economic Development & Culture
Building Integrated Photovoltaics:
Initial Thoughts on Industry Development Opportunities
for Toronto
Rob McMonagle
Economic Development & Culture
City of Toronto
www.sarahhallstudio.com

2. Economic Development & Culture
New Construction in Toronto
 Toronto has more high rise construction than any other
North American City
200
178
180
January 2011
160
January 2012
140
120
97 95
100 8888
80 74
60
40
24 22
16 1616
20
4 7 12 8 9 10 9 8 9 4 7 2 4 3 3 2 2
0

3. Economic Development & Culture
Cost of BIPV vs. Conventional Building Cladding
 City is currently doing a study of building cladding costs in
Toronto (completed summer 2012)
 International studies indicate that BIPV is comparable to
medium-high end cladding costs
 Note: cladding cost is $/m2 not $/watt – so less efficient modules may
be attractive for cladding

4. Economic Development & Culture
PV Technologies in the BIPV Market
 All technologies are currently in use. Ontario’s solar
manufacturing is primarily crystalline technologies.

5. Economic Development & Culture
Leading Countries in Deploying BIPV

6. Economic Development & Culture
Moving Beyond “Modules”
 Becoming part of the supply chain for the building
industry is critical to develop a naturally sustaining
market – making PV plates into other products –
windows, curtain wall, etc
 Customization (as is done for windows in
commercial development) is also critical for success
1. PV Glass
2. Glass Strip
3. Spacer
4. Sealing

7. Economic Development & Culture
BIPV as Art
 The City requires that at least 1% of the construction costs be
contributed to public art through the Public Art Program
http://www.toronto.ca/planning/urbdesign/public_art.htm
 BIPV could meet the requirements (hence providing significant cost
savings)
A public art approved project A BIPV project at Harbourfront

8. Economic Development & Culture
Key Elements of a BIPV Industry/Market Development
Strategy
Education, Awareness Policies & Financing Industry and R&D
Market Enhancement
& Capacity Building Mechanisms Enhancement
• Stakeholder • Standards & • Techno-economic • Industry and
workshops Guidelines analysis international
• Project database • Local product • Best practices study collaboration
• Resource website development & • Design of support • Technology transfer
• Establishment of database mechanisms • Cost reduction and
working groups • Demonstrations & (policy/financial) system optimization
showcases for local conditions
• Upgrading of local
industry capacities

9. Economic Development & Culture
BIPV and the FiT Program – Maybe not a good fit?
 FiT program is designed for retrofitting (and ground mounts) – does not
take into the unique attributes of BIPV
 City of Toronto has done a report on the barriers that BIPV face in FiT
 Examples:
 BIPV is typically small systems in a large building – series metering
connections are best and reduces installation costs (but not allowed in FiT)
 Ontario content point system does not reflect the BIPV elements (i.e. points
for the mounting system)
 Building design and build cycle can be 36+ months – new rules restrict it to
18 months
 Builders cannot wait 8-12 months to know if there project is FiT approved (as
the BIPV is part of the building)
 Net Metering may be the best option to consider for BIPV

10. Economic Development & Culture
Resources
 The City of Toronto is working with stakeholders to advance
the adoption of BIPV in the Toronto area. There are a
number of opportunities to engage on this.
 Toronto BIPV resource page:
http://www.greenbuildingontario.ca/component/content/article/2
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 Toronto Building Integrated Photovoltaics LinkedIn Group – join
to share information
 Send an email to greentech@toronto.ca
 Working group of interested stakeholders being established to identify
opportunities (and challenges) – if interested see me!
 Sarah Hall Studios (a unique Toronto resource!):
www.sarahhallstudio.com

11. Contact Information
Rob McMonagle
Senior Advisor, Green Technology and Green Energy
Economic Development & Culture Toronto
rmcmona@toronto.ca
www.toronto.ca/invest-in-toronto/green
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