Month: March 2023

econext recognizes winners of Newfoundland and Labrador’s clean growth awards

Posted on by kieran

For Immediate Release
March 30, 2023

econext is celebrating the achievements of its members in balancing economy and environment today at its Industry Awards ceremony.

“Actions in the fight against climate change continue to accelerate and intensify globally,” said Kieran Hanley, econext‘s CEO. “Our members are doing some world class things here in Newfoundland and Labrador that deserve to be recognized and be part of that story.”

Hon. Bernard Davis, Newfoundland and Labrador’s Minister of Environment and Climate Change, addressing econext’s members.

The Honourable Bernard Davis, Minister of Environment and Climate Change, was on hand today to announce the winners of econext‘s industry awards:

  • Cleantech Innovation Award – C-CORE
  • Business Excellence Award – PARDY’S Waste Management and Industrial Services
  • International Business Award – Port of Argentia

Information on the awards and all of the winners is found in the backgrounder below.

“Congratulations to our deserving award winners, each of whom is helping to drive clean growth in Newfoundland and Labrador.”

econext is an association of businesses that accelerates clean growth in Newfoundland and Labrador and works on behalf of over 200 members to foster environmentally sustainable economic development. More information can be found at https://econext.ca.

— 30 —

Media Contact:
Kieran Hanley
CEO
kieran@econext.ca

Backgrounder

Cleantech Innovation Award

econext’s Cleantech Innovation Award recognizes innovation at any stage of development in business and academia – from research and development, to commercialization, to refinement – of products, services, or processes that can mitigate effects to, protect, or enhance the environment. The award is judged according to the uniqueness of the innovation, the potential for positive environmental impact, and the potential for commercial application.

The winner of this year’s Cleantech Innovation Award is C-CORE.

Hon. Bernard Davis, Minister of Environment and Climate Change presenting the Cleantech Innovation Award to C-CORE, represented by President and CEO Paul Griffin

C-CORE is an internationally recognized institution in earth observation, remote sensing, and oceans and energy innovation. C-CORE has been a key driver of and contributor to Newfoundland and Labrador’s innovation ecosystem, and that work continued this past year.

C-CORE has developed what it calls a Rapid High-capacity Test Apparatus, or RHITA, a technology that is becoming an important component of C-CORE’s research and development work. RHITA is helping to understand and mitigate the negative effects of icebergs impacting subsea ocean based assets. The saying “tip of the iceberg”, afterall, comes from the fact that we really only can see the tip of an iceberg and the much larger portion is under the water. What is subsurface is unknown, and presents risks for important infrastructure, present or future. This includes offshore platforms, pipes or pipelines, flexible flow lines, moorings, or cables on the seabed.

When icebergs make contact with such infrastructure, it can push or drag important components along the ocean floor. This is harmful not only to the function of the assets and the operations that they support, but also to the environment around it as well. To measure the effect of this interaction on the pipe or cable, C-CORE is utilizing RHITA. RHITA uses a cylindrical steel indenter representing a pipe, flexible flow line, or cable and pushes it into a large ice sample.

What happens next provides important evidence from which risk mitigation decisions can be made. C-CORE is able to provide guidance on how such interactions can be avoided, how assets can be designed or reinforced to better withstand such interactions, or even lower the risk factors associated with occurrences if the outcomes are not as damaging as expected.

Part of C-CORE’s larger Subsea Ice Interaction Barriers to Energy Development (SIIBED) project, this work is representative of the world-leading cluster of excellence that is present in Newfoundland and Labrador related to the environmental sensing, characterization, and monitoring of the environment. econext is pleased to award this year’s Cleantech Innovation Award to C-CORE.

Business Excellence Award

econext‘s Business Excellence Award recognizes a significant initiative or achievement of a business engaged in Newfoundland and Labrador’s green economy. This could include the completion of specific projects, business growth milestones, or a contribution to the community from a sustainability or corporate social responsibility perspective. The award is judged according to the initiative or achievement’s impact as it relates to economic growth and development, positive environmental effects, and public awareness of green economy and environmental challenges or opportunities.

The winner of this year’s Business Excellence Award is PARDY’S Waste Management and Industrial Services.

Hon. Bernard Davis, Minister of Environment and Climate Change presenting the Business Excellence Award to PARDY’S Waste Management and Industrial Services, represented by General Manager Steve Moores

PARDY’S have been leaders in growing the green economy in Newfoundland and Labrador for decades. Its services are broad and include industrial cleaning, vacuum services, liquid waste transport, waste oil recycling, industrial water treatment, waste disposal brokerage, and bulk liquid organic organic waste treatment and industrial composting. The company is active not just in this province, but throughout Atlantic Canada and into other parts of the country as well.

PARDY’S has completed a number of recent projects which have helped open it up to new lines of business and new customers. In Pickering Ontario the company piloted the application of technology to address non-treatable water that was being shipping out of country for disposal. The pilot proved successful and demonstrated potential cost savings to the customer of $16 million per year. In Saint John New Brunswick PARDY’S worked under emergency conditions requiring rapid response in winter climate conditions to treat 63 million litres of ammonia and MEA impacted water for a customer. Right here in Newfoundland and Labrador PARDY’S facilitated the safe collection of 13 million litres of wastewater from the offshore, marking the first time in history that this waste was received and treated within the province. Moreover, a pilot project was recently completed which validated conventional phase separation technologies as an effective primary treatment method for spent drilling mud.

These projects, all executed successfully, have opened new doors for PARDY’S to provide services that up until this point had not been available. In the process, PARDY’S has made great strides to enhance its technological capabilities this past year. The company is capturing more work in the aquaculture and mining industries, has made recent acquisitions to expand its presence in Atlantic Canada – while simultaneously working towards advancing Newfoundland and Labrador’s composting industry.

PARDY’S mission is to be a premium Newfoundland and Labrador waste management corporation that delivers responsible, efficient, and sustainable waste management solutions to customers throughout Canada. It has been doing so for 30 years and continues to strive to do more. Congratulations to PARDY’S Waste Management and Industrial Services on being recognized with the Business Excellence Award.

International Business Award

econext’s International Business Award recognizes a significant initiative or achievement of a Newfoundland and Labrador organization engaged in international business activities relating to cleantech or environmental services. Initiatives or achievements could include export success, diversification into new sectors or markets, collaborative research and development, or the establishment of international partners. The award is judged according to the relative impact of the internationalization activity for the individual business and/or the industry at-large.

The winner of this year’s International Business Award is Port of Argentia.

Hon. Bernard Davis, Minister of Environment and Climate Change presenting the International Business Award to Port of Argentia, represented by Chair Wayne Power

It has been a landmark year for Port of Argentia. Guided by global trends in the energy transition, Port of Argentia embarked on an aggressive marketing and promotional campaign to attract renewable energy companies.

Highlighting key strategic advantages of its location and promoting Argentia as a viable location for onshore wind energy development and support to Northeastern US offshore wind energy, the Port strategically placed advertisements in regional, national, and international industry publications, attended key global sector tradeshows and conferences, and reached out to new international business prospects in the renewable energy space.

The Port’s efforts yielded results, delivering two significant contracts to become North America’s first monopile marshalling yard in support of emerging US offshore wind energy. In preparation for the arrival of monopiles, the port will see a total of $10 million in infrastructure improvements, including road widening, dock facility enhancements, and creation of more than 12 acres of laydown lands adjacent to docking facilities. These site improvements will position the port well for additional future investment attraction and generate significant economic spinoff benefits for the region, province, and country.

Port of Argentia also successfully attracted a partner for the development of Argentia Renewables, a proposed multi-phase wind energy-to-green fuels production facility to be constructed on Port lands. The Port’s team worked closely with Pattern Energy, a global leader in renewable energy development and operations, to create a mutually beneficial partnership to support the development and construction of the project over the next several years. The project is slated to begin on Port lands with a 300-Megawatt wind energy facility powering a green ammonia project (including hydrogen electrolyzers) for the purpose of export to global markets. Future possible phases include expansion of additional wind capacity on neighbouring Crown Lands, and expansion of hydrogen production facilities on Port lands.

Through its targeted international business efforts, Port of Argentia has transformed and positioned itself as a leading national hub for clean energy activity that all in Newfoundland and Labrador should be proud of. Congratulations to Port of Argentia on being recognized with econext’s international business award.

Nunacor Development Corporation

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Nunacor is the business arm of the NunatuKavut government with the primary goal of developing and growing business opportunities to benefit NunatuKavut members.

Rhenus Logistics Canada

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Rhenus Logistics is a family run business from Germany, it is particularly important for the Rhenus Group to focus on the wishes and needs of its customers. Rhenus has a long history providing services to clients globally and we are excited for this next chapter. We have a large number of maritime services in our group that we look forward to offering your team. We operate 50+ seaport and inland ports in Europe and are preparing our first steps overseas. We operate around 600 inland barges (tug, self-propelled barges, barges), a number of coastal vessel as well as some deep-sea multi-purpose vessel and are currently in the process of setting up a new deep-sea carrier. We also offer Warehousing, Logistics Coordination Services, POB Management, Vessel Management, Port Agency, Freight Forwarding, Customs and Brokerage, Transportation, Project Logistics and a variety of Bulk Shipping ( Break Bulk, Pipe, Rebar ).

ABO Wind Canada Ltd.

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We are pioneers of renewable energy by conviction. ABO Wind develops and builds wind and solar farms as well as battery and hydrogen projects worldwide. For more than 25 years, ABO Wind’s in-house specialist departments have been providing all steps of project development and implementation: from site assessment, planning, engineering, permitting and financing to construction, grid connection, operational management and maintenance. A future worth living for future generations is our overarching goal. Renewables are our DNA. Canada has exceptional wind resources and almost all provinces and territories use them. Since the new Canadian Federal Government was elected in 2015, there has been a greater emphasis on the development of renewable energy throughout all of Canada.

Continuing the growth of 2018, Canada added 597 megawatts of onshore wind energy in 2019 and finished the year with a total of 13,413 megawatts. This makes Canada the ninth largest wind energy nation in the world.

ABO Wind opened a new office in Alberta in the fall of 2017. ABO Wind Canada mainly focuses on developing wind energy and photovoltaic projects in Alberta and Saskatchewan. The company is also open for project development in any other province to support the transition towards renewable energy in Canada.

Besides greenfield development, ABO Wind Canada also develops hybrid energy systems, community and commercial sized developments, off-grid solutions as well as research and demonstration projects.

ABO Wind is also looking to cooperate with other developers and open for partnerships.

Rob Strong and Associates

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Resource industry consultants with particular interest in oil and gas as well as wind development.

2023 Annual General Meeting and Industry Awards Presentations

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From March 30 – April 7, 2023 econext will hold its Annual General Meeting. The event is hybrid as to allow for maximum participation from members across the province.

In-Person Event

This event will feature:

  • Remarks from the Hon. Bernard Davis, Minister of Environment and Climate Change
  • The presentation of the econext Industry Awards
  • The 2022-23 Annual Report
  • The Year Ahead: 2023-24 Preview
  • Membership Questions & Answers

Date: March 30, 2023
Time: 8:30am – 10:30am
Location: Comfort Hotel and Conference Centre, 106 Airport Road, St. John’s, NL

An event agenda can be downloaded below. This is a member-only event. Representatives from each econext member will be provided with registration information directly via email. If you do not receive your registration package, please contact econext CEO Kieran Hanley at kieran@econext.ca.

Download Event Agenda

Online Voting

Members will be provided a personalized access code (distributed on April 3) which will be used for the casting of votes through to 17h00 NST on April 7, 2023. An online forum will be provided for members to ask questions and receive answers.

Resources

If you have any questions, please contact CEO Kieran Hanley at kieran@econext.ca.

Industry Collab Networking Event

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The only thing better than one network is five!

Join us for a combined event bringing together the diverse and expansive networks of some of the largest industry associations in our province.

On Tuesday, March 28th the St. John’s Board of Trade, Energy NL, econext, techNL and NLOWE are bringing our members together so we can do what we do best; connect and collaborate!

Live music – Appetizers – Refreshments

We look forward to seeing you.

Click Here to Register

Offshore Wind Market Entry Program – March 2023

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Are you a Canadian company interested in learning more about selling to the U.S. offshore wind market?

The Trade Commissioner Service in Boston is organizing a pilot program to assist Canadian clients as they explore market entry strategies into the U.S. offshore wind industry.

Introductory Webinar: Open to all Canadian clients

March 14th
Time: 12:00-2:00 ET

On March 14th, the Trade Commissioner Service in Boston will host a webinar featuring the Xodus Group. The Xodus group is a global energy consultancy that has worked with both developers and states in the U.S. as they seek to expand their offshore wind supply chains. The webinar will include an overview of the US offshore wind market, information on the current project pipeline and a discussion of potential entry pathways, key decision points and approaches to articulating your companies value proposition for offshore wind clients.

Individual one-one-one session (6 selected clients)

*Sessions will be schedule individually between March 16 and March 31st*

Following this webinar, the Trade Commissioner Service will select 6 clients to participate in one-on-one sessions with Xodus. The benefits will include:

2-hour deep dive into the company’s specific value-add areas for the offshore wind industry including

  • Recommendations of customizing approaches by service/product area
  • Suggestions on incorporating the company’s existing expertise into the new strategy
  • Considerations for geography, scaling, workforce development, and more
  • A final write-up summarizing recommendations

Follow-up introductions to 3 local contacts (developers, partners, state agencies, etc.)

Program Eligibility:

  • Companies that have a product/service for the offshore wind market with a high potential for growth
  • Companies that are interested in refining their strategy and marketing for the U.S. offshore Wind market.
  • Companies that are interested in connecting with U.S. developers, partners, regulators, etc.

Click Here to Apply
DEADLINE: Completed applications must be received by March 16th 2023

For more information, please contact Erin Donahue, Trade Commissioner, Consulate of Canada in Boston, at erin.donahue@international.gc.ca.

Request for Expressions of Interest: Hosting a Clean Energy Entrepreneurial Work Term Student

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In partnership with the Memorial Centre for Entrepreneurship (MCE), econext is helping to facilitate the placement of entrepreneurial work term students within SMEs in Newfoundland and Labrador (NL) that have clean energy interests.

The entrepreneurial work term sees students from Memorial University complete a placement which allows them to explore new business ideas and work on their own startup enterprise. This joint MCE-econext initiative will encourage students to pursue clean energy-focused ideas while embedded within a local SME that has the expertise and interest in assisting them with their ideas.

Throughout the placement, the student will be provided entrepreneurial guidance from the MCE. Students can come from faculties with established co-operative education programming (e.g., business, engineering) or from any other discipline even if there is no formal work term programming or requirements in place. The first work terms will take place between May – August.

The objective of this initiative are to (1) help build the talent pipeline in NL to succeed in the emerging clean energy industry; (2) build interest and capacity in clean energy innovation and startups; (3) provide meaningful work-integrated learning opportunities for students and their hosts.

econext is seeking the participation of five (5) of its members to help pilot this initiative. If you are interested in hosting an clean energy entrepreneurial work term student, please contact Kieran Hanley at kieran@econext.ca.

Request for Expressions of Interest: Infographic Design

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The objective of this Request for Expressions of Interest (EOI) is for econext to assess capabilities and interest from firms in the provision of graphic design services to create a series of infographics that demonstrate climate change / clean growth concepts in Newfoundland and Labrador.

These infographics will be used to educate stakeholders and inspire action towards mitigating the effects of climate change and growing the green economy.

econext is asking interested parties to consider the following factors with respect to one infographic in their response to this EOI:

  • Firms will be provided with all information required for the infographic;
  • Firms will be relied upon to provide guidance on how information should be presented in an infographic based on best practices and the target audience;
  • Infographics should be designed to be 8.5 x 11 in size (plus bleeding and crop markings) as to allow for printing;
  • Infographics should be delivered in PDF format (vector-based); and
  • Firms will provide the source design files for the infographic created.

econext will draw from the pool of designers submitting responses to this EOI for future work.

Reponses to this EOI should include the following information:

  • Cost per infographic designed and delivered;
  • Estimate of timeline associated with infographic delivery, assuming you have been provided with all required information; and
  • Examples of relevant design work.

The electronic copy of your submissions should be in a single PDF document and sent to Kieran Hanley at kieran@econext.ca. Questions from interested respondents can be sent to the same address. The deadline for EOI responses is March 22, 2023.