College Bourget’s decarbonization project: Dual energy at the heart of the energy transition

When we think "decarbonization," we often imagine heavy, costly, and complicated work. The project carried out in 2025 at College Bourget by C-nergie in Rigaud, Quebec, proves exactly the opposite.

College Bourget is a vast, century-old campus of 38,000 m², heated by natural gas with aging and highly energy-intensive equipment. The project's objective was clear: to drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions without compromising students and residents’ comfort, and without tying up the college's capital.

The solution? A smart dual-energy system. C-nergie added high-temperature heat pumps and an electric boiler, while retaining natural gas, as a backup, during extreme cold periods. The result: heating is now primarily electric, especially when the outside temperature is mild (which is more than 90% of the year).

Because electricity is massively decarbonized in Quebec (hydroelectricity), we have enabled the College to reduce their GHG emissions by 1,186T, or 87% compared to 2023.

And the project doesn't stop there. The teams also optimized ventilation, modernized controls (BMS), corrected inconsistencies in electricity tariffs and upgraded several mechanical systems to save energy.

Thanks to our partnership with SOFIAC (an impact investment fund), the client did not have to finance a single dollar for the project. Of the $4.8 million project cost, over $3.1 million was subsidized by various available programs in Quebec to accelerate energy transition. The remaining $1.7 million was financed for SOFIAC and will be reimbursed by the energy savings that we guarantee.

A great example of decarbonization that is profitable, concrete and replicable.