Ivano Labricciosa, President and CEO of Oshawa Power and Utilities Corporation (OPUC)

Currently Ivano Labricciosa holds the position of President and CEO of Oshawa Power and Utilities Corporation (OPUC), which provides energy and communication services to the Oshawa and Durham regions and parts of the GTA. With a background in engineering, business development, and strategic planning, as well as his international experience with alternative and renewable energy, Ivano is providing innovative leadership to Ontario’s energy sector.

Ivano holds a Bachelor of Engineering Science degree from Western University, a Master of Engineering degree from the University of Toronto, and a Master of Business Administration from Queen’s University. He is a member of a myriad of committees and professional associations which include: being on the board of directors of the Oshawa Chamber of Commerce and the Canadian Solar Industry Association, Chair of the Business Improvement Association of Oshawa and a member of the Ontario Smart Grid Forum.

He possesses over 40 years experience in the energy sector, which started at East York Hydro as the Director of Operations. Next, he moved on to a 12-year career with Toronto Hydro, which began during the city of Toronto's amalgamation. After Toronto Hydro, he took time off from working, spending it on personal projects around his house and cottage. Before long, he grew restless and decided to take on some private consulting work in Europe, the Middle East, and the United States. He spent three years working internationally on projects that drew on his knowledge of smart grid and smart meter technology, their pricing and energy efficiency. He discovered that these innovations were in high demand globally.

In 2016, OPUC was in need of someone with a new vision-- someone with knowledge of asset management and entrepreneurial thinking regarding new technology projects. Ivano was hired. Ivano expresses his view of OPUC’s successes under his leadership: “Our innovation and creativity is making something work, our expertise is putting our shoulder into things and doing the applied science… not inventing technologies, but making something better.”

One such initiative was a Solar Energy Management System (SEMS) pilot project in Oshawa. In partnership with Tabuchi Electric, New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO), and OPUC, 30 homes in Oshawa were outfitted with a SEMS. The chief purpose of this pilot project was to monitor back-up functionality and energy storage during power outages and peak shifts and to quantify the potential savings on customers’ electric bills. Over the next five years the results were recorded and showed positive results in all categories. Ivano was instrumental in getting the pilot set up in Oshawa and believes it is a great example of how we can achieve a sustainable future.

He also brought with him a vision to further expand OPUC's geographical distribution network beyond Oshawa and to provide innovative sustainable energy options. He wanted a name that would set them up to expand their technology services and make it possible to experiment with different forms of sustainable energy. So, he rebranded OPUC Energy Services to be known as EnerForge.

A Commitment to Community

Acting on this vision, OPUC won the bid to provide heat and electricity to Regent Park. This enabled them to build a local generating system at 252 Sackville Avenue, in the core of Toronto. It is comprised of three 2.4MW Combined Heat and Power (CHP) cycle engines, as opposed to the conventional generating system that separates heat and power (referred to as SHP). Overall efficiency of SHP systems is 60%, while CHP systems rate as high as 86%.

Ivano contrasts Regent Park’s system to large scale energy production sites like the Portlands Energy Centre, which has a 37% efficiency. He calls this an “open loop system,” in which heat is exhausted rather than re-purposed. District energy systems like Regent Park are “closed loop” because very little energy goes to waste.

Ivano takes great pride in the customer service his company provides and is grateful to hear the positive feedback from residents in these communities, “Our customers there (Regent Park) speak volumes about us. They say it's night and day between the service they received from their former providers.” He said. “It's been a great story for us, and for them.”

Moss Park is another example of Ivano's interest in bringing energy solutions that are both efficient and affordable to low-income communities. This second site was developed with a slightly different CHP, using two 300kW 'micro engines' in three different buildings.

Ivano's interest in urban energy solutions does not stop there. He plans to continue building CHP systems in 24 community housing sites across the GTA.

Finally, Ivano's continuing efforts to find new and creative sustainable energy projects can be seen in the recent partnership between EnerForge, ZooShare and the Toronto Zoo. By turning manure and food waste into renewable power, this Biogas project will effectively reduce annual GHG emissions by 20,000 tonnes and offset approximately one-third of the Zoo's electricity demands. Excess electricity will be fed back into the grid, while Methane is converted into thermal energy that will heat the zoo. The remaining solid waste can then be used as fertilizer.

It's All About Passion

Ivano thinks that engineering is largely a male-dominated field. When he graduated from engineering in the 1990's, there were only three women in his class. But he believes that there is an advantage to encouraging women to pursue careers in the applied sciences. He thinks that engineering is not just about problem solving; bringing a creative view to this work is also of value. “When you marry that with some of the passion that WiRE (Women in Renewable Energy) brings around a clean and sustainable future, that kind of potential is fantastic.” He points to the need for out-of-the-box thinking, which groups like WiRE exemplify. Their approach challenges the old ways of thinking that have historically dominated the energy sector.

Encouraging the Next Generation

Ivano believes that students graduating from engineering typically dismiss careers in the energy sector. They tend to focus their future sights on companies they perceive as 'glamorous,' like Tesla, Google and Apple, and discount work in the energy sector as boring. “What’s kept me young and youthful is connecting to the next generation, bringing them into the industry.”

In his work with Ryerson, UofT and Ontario Tech University, Ivano takes every opportunity to mentor students. He encourages them to recognize that there are many fulfilling career opportunities in the energy sector. He wants young people to realize this is particularly relevant for those who appreciate innovation, problem-solving and contributing to societal good.

Recently, the importance of mentorship hit home for Ivano when he had the opportunity to meet one of his own idols. In January 2020 OPUC invited Bill Nye to be a guest speaker at Ontario Tech for the engineering community. Meeting an individual who inspired him was a big moment for Ivano. It reminded him of the impact of role models who can influence and point you in new directions.