Hybrid Heat in Quebec

The document examines a partnership between Hydro-Québec and Énergir to transition building heating to a 'dual energy' system, where electricity is used primarily and natural gas is reserved for cold snaps. While the agreement reduces natural gas consumption by over 70% and is more cost-effective for the grid than full electrification, the authors warn of potential 'carbon lock-in' due to 15-year contracts and the uncertainty of whether renewable natural gas (RNG) can replace the remaining 30% of gas demand.

• Hydro-Québec and Énergir signed a dual energy agreement for 2022–2045 to convert heating systems so that natural gas is used only during cold snaps to reduce stress on the electrical network, while electricity is used outside these peak periods.
• The dual energy transition is projected to reduce natural gas consumption for residential, commercial, and institutional customers by more than 70%.
• Implementing dual energy is significantly cheaper for Hydro-Québec than full electrification; it yields $1.682 billion in savings and requires only 63 MW of additional power by 2030, compared to 2,070 MW of additional capacity (costing $2.7 billion) for full electrification.
• To mitigate revenue losses from customers switching to dual energy, Hydro-Québec will provide Énergir with financial compensation, known as a GHG contribution, up to $403 million by 2030, covering roughly 80% of lost revenue.
• The agreement may create 'carbon lock-in' because 15-year customer contracts lock in natural gas consumption until 2045, contradicting International Energy Agency recommendations to ban new fossil fuel boilers starting in 2025 to reach net zero by 2050.
• There is insufficient evidence that renewable natural gas (RNG) can replace the 30% residual gas demand required by the agreement; in 2022, RNG accounted for only 0.6% of the natural gas distributed by Énergir.
• The agreement is limited in scope as it only addresses the building sector, which represents 35.9% of distributed natural gas, while the industrial sector (64.1%) is excluded.

APA

Canadian Climate Institute (2023). Hybrid Heat in Quebec. https://climateinstitute.ca/publications/hybrid-heat-in-quebec/

Chicago

Canadian Climate Institute. Hybrid Heat in Quebec. 2023. https://climateinstitute.ca/publications/hybrid-heat-in-quebec/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Canadian Climate Institute |title=Hybrid Heat in Quebec |date=14 April 2023 |url=https://climateinstitute.ca/publications/hybrid-heat-in-quebec/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{canadianclimateinstitute2023hybrid, author = {{Canadian Climate Institute}}, title = {{Hybrid Heat in Quebec}}, institution = {Canadian Climate Institute}, year = {2023}, month = apr, url = {https://climateinstitute.ca/publications/hybrid-heat-in-quebec/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }