Creative Energy is a Vancouver-based Neighbourhood Energy utility company made up of city builders, energy innovators and creative thinkers. — Photo courtesy Creative Energy
Creative Energy, which owns and operates one of the largest thermal energy networks in Canada, today announced that Krishnan Iyer, a seasoned district energy and infrastructure executive, has joined the company as President and Chief Executive Officer.
Mr. Iyer was most recently Executive Vice President, Lending and Chief Financial Officer at Infrastructure Ontario, where he led the $8 billion infrastructure lending and finance functions. He was responsible for creating the credit framework for infrastructure lending, optimizing its capital structure, financial reporting, enterprise risk management and transaction structuring, including multi-billion dollar public-private partnership projects. Prior to joining Infrastructure Ontario in 2014, Mr. Iyer served as interim Chief Financial Officer of Borealis Infrastructure, which owns and manages major infrastructure assets in North America and Europe. From 1998 to 2013, Mr. Iyer was instrumental in expanding the footprint of district energy in Toronto through various senior roles with Enwave Energy Corporation, including as Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President, Company Operations.
“We are delighted to welcome an executive of Krishnan’s calibre to lead the next phase of Creative Energy’s growth in North America,” said Jack Bittan, formerly Creative Energy’s interim President and Chief Executive Officer and a current board director of Creative Energy Developments LP. “Krishnan brings a wealth of management experience in district energy and the infrastructure sector more broadly, and shares our vision for the increasing role of neighbourhood energy systems in building stronger, greener cities. His leadership style, industry expertise and market knowledge positions Creative Energy to significantly expand upon its 50-year legacy of providing cities with cost-effective, efficient, sustainable and reliable energy.”
“I am excited to assume this new role and for the future of Creative Energy, which has a proven platform and outstanding growth potential,” said Mr. Iyer. “We have a talented team that is focused on innovating neighbourhood energy systems in new and diverse ways, and partnering with municipalities, developers and institutions to improve energy efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. I look forward to contributing to Creative Energy’s leadership in developing, financing, renewing and managing sustainable urban energy infrastructure.”
Creative Energy’s growing network has a 50-year operating history with 14 kilometres of distribution pipes serving more than 210 buildings in downtown Vancouver at a 99.9% reliability rate. Creative Energy is currently delivering multiple innovative neighbourhood energy systems in Canada, including at Oakridge in Vancouver, Horseshoe Bay in West Vancouver, and Mirvish Village in Toronto. These projects, which incorporate a range of environmentally-friendly technologies, including cooling and cooling heat recovery, ocean exchange, geoexchange, and combined heat and power, will collectively reduce greenhouse gas emissions by an estimated 8,150 tonnes annually compared with conventional energy systems, the equivalent of removing 1,500 automobiles from the road, and are expected to create more than 2,000 direct and indirect jobs during construction. Additional future projects for Creative Energy include a new district energy site in Vancouver using urban wood waste, which would further reduce the city’s greenhouse gas emissions by 80,000 tonnes annually, the equivalent of removing 14,000 vehicles from the road.
