Bedford, Nova Scotia-based home builder Provident Development has been selected as one of five Canadian builders to be part of a national initiative to develop net-zero homes, reports Daily Business Buzz.
As a part of the project, Provident Development has agreed to plan and build a minimum of five net-zero energy homes by 2016.
More than $4 million in funding and in-kind contributions from the federal ecoENERGY Innovation Initiative (ecoEII) and the building industry will allow for the construction of at least 25 net-zero energy homes in four provinces: Nova Scotia, Quebec, Ontario and Alberta.
ecoEII will be providing $1.96 million in funding for professional services required for the planning, design and construction of the houses. The remaining funds will come from Owens Corning Canada, builders and the building industry in the form of in-kind contributions to fund the construction of the homes.
Owens Corning Canada is working with five homebuilders to test the feasibility of developing net-zero homes at the community level.
Technical design, planning and training processes are already in progress. Home construction is expected to begin this year.
“We are excited about participating in this new initiative and furthering our efforts in acceptable consumer design and the use of cost-effective products and procedures,” Provident Development President John Greenough said.
“We believe this is the future of the energy efficient housing industry and look forward to providing input to create net-zero housing that will be suitable for production building. This project will hopefully make it possible for more families to share in the benefits of net-zero energy homes.”
