A major milestone in sustainable industrial development was unveiled at the Okanagan Eco Industrial Park in Coldstream today.
The business park is now home to British Columbia’s largest commercial-industrial solar installation.
Located on land that was once home to a notable glass factory, the Okanagan Eco Industrial Park is a product of family-owned BC business Restoration Lands Inc.
Restoration Lands unveiled the monumental installation today with support from BC Hydro, as a $875,000 incentive from the Crown corporation covered almost 40% of the project’s cost.
According to BC Hydro, the 148,000-square-foot solar array is as big as two football fields and features 2,460 high-efficiency solar panels.
It’s expected to produce 1.7 gigawatt-hours of renewable electricity annually, which is enough to meet a quarter of the current power needs of the mixed-used industrial park or the equivalent of powering more than 150 new homes.
“This is about more than generating clean electricity – it’s about redefining what sustainable industrial growth looks like in British Columbia,” said Adrian Dix, BC’s minister of energy and climate solutions.
“We’re proving that electrified infrastructure and clean energy adoption can go hand-in-hand with economic revitalization, job creation, community building and environmental stewardship.”
The Okanagan Eco Industrial Park is already home to 10 businesses, a diverse group that includes engineering, modular construction and agritech companies.
Another 17 lots are ready for development and Restoration Lands expects to eventually create or relocate around 1,000 jobs to the site.
“This initiative reflects our family’s focus on not just building for today, but also enabling for tomorrow by revitalizing Coldstream with sustainable infrastructure, economic opportunity and environmental leadership,” said Michael Molnar, CEO and founder of Restoration Lands.
“By transforming the vast unused space on our rooftop into a source of renewable energy, we’re showing how responsible industrial innovation can create a more resilient future.”
A potential second phase of the project could double the current solar capacity at the Okanagan Eco Industrial Park, as well as incorporate battery storage solutions to further strengthen reliability and boost on-site power generation.
