Another senior executive leaves Hilo, a subsidiary of Hydro-Québec
Hilo is a subsidiary of Hydro-Québec that specializes in saving electricity.
In turmoil for several weeks, Hilo, a subsidiary of Hydro-Québec , loses its vice president of technology.
In office since the beginning of the Hilo smart home program, David Saint-Germain announced Thursday that he had left the subsidiary of Hydro-Québec. He took the opportunity to defend the program supposed to reduce electricity consumption by customers of the state company during winter peaks.
On his LinkedIn account, Mr. Saint-Germain highlighted the work accomplished by the teams involved during the three years since the deployment of the Hilo program. To date, we have delivered over 50 MW of displacement average power and reached 75 MW of displacement average in extreme cold spells, he wrote.
“This is an exceptional result that exceeds the forecasts filed with the Régie de l'Énergie. »
— David Saint-Germain, former vice-president of technologies at Hydro-Québec subsidiary Hilo
These power shifts thus allow the state-owned company to avoid buying electricity from its independent partners or having to start up its Bécancour gas plant.
The previous year, Hilo users allowed the displacing 14 megawatts of power, half of what was envisioned.
Additionally, there is a cost to the rebates offered to the approximately 20,000 Hilo residential and commercial customers who successfully complete the energy-saving challenges presented to them. According to the calculations of the daily Le Devoir, the gains made thanks to Hilo last winter cost an average of $136 per kW. This is about twice as much as the power demand management program.
However, Hydro-Québec refuses to reveal the sums invested in its subsidiary Hilo. However, the organization specifies that the objective of moving 47 MW this year has been achieved and that that of 2028-2029 of 621 MW (the equivalent of the La Romaine 2 dam) remains achievable.
>
Devices connected with Hilo.
In February, Radio-Canada also revealed that because of cheaters, Hydro-Québec was considering changing the rules of Hilo. Indeed, some participants tended to over-consume electricity just before the challenges in order to maximize their cash back afterwards.
If last fall, Hydro-Québec ensured that& #x27;she is not disappointed with Hilo, she nevertheless thanked the CEO of her subsidiary Sébastien Fournier and indicated that she wanted to analyze its organizational model.
By email, Hydro-Québec indicates that this evaluation is now complete and that announcements have started to keep Hilo's 150 employees informed.
Some Hilo activities will remain within the subsidiary, such as technology development, which represents more than half of Hilo's employees. Other operations such as marketing, sales, customer service will be integrated into Hydro-Quebec's activities, said Cendrix Bouchard, a Hydro-Quebec spokesperson, by email. We want to avoid the duplication of activities without cutting jobs.
In his departure message, David Saint-Germain pleads for the state corporation not to throw away the baby with the bathwater, in the face of public and media opinions that sometimes struggle to grasp the complex issues.
“As with many aspects of modern political discourse, we often shy away from nuance and fine reasoning and dwell only on x27;to what arouses emotion. »
— David Saint-Germain, former vice-president of technologies of the subsidiary of hydro-Québec Hilo
Whatever the outcome at Hilo, this guy automated energy management systems will gradually emerge everywhere on the planet to ensure sound management of our resources. In 50 years, these tools will be part of everyone's daily life and will no longer be noticed, he added.
