Measurement Canada and the Regulation of Thermal Energy Meters

Regulation to the Canadian thermal metering market is here

Measurement Canada is moving forward with industry regulations and meter type approval. QMC has been approved as the first national distributor of thermal metering products in Canada. This builds upon our expertise with the electrical metering inspection program and installation verification services.

Thermal energy meter installations:

image of a timeline that building operators must change their thermal metering equipment
  1. Clients must install thermal energy meters which meet the EN-1434, OILM R75 and CAN/CSA-C900.1-13 standards.
  2. Product approvals to start in 2018, all unapproved devices to be removed by 2026.  New developers would not want to order meters now that do not meet the standards above as they will have to remove the meters well before their end of life.

What you need to know from Measurement Canada:

As of July 1, 2019, all newly installed thermal energy meters must be approved by Measurement Canada. As of January 1, 2026, all unapproved and unexamined thermal energy meters will no longer be allowed to be used. If your thermal meter is installed before July 1, 2019 and the date of use is before January 1, 2026, then you may use it even without approval. You may apply for an exemption under Section 7 if:

  1. A thermal energy meter approved for use in trade or approved for use in the particular manner or for the particular purpose contemplated by the parties is not available to them for use in their intended transaction; and
  2. It would be impractical or unreasonably expensive for the parties to obtain approval for a meter that they wish to use in their intended trade transaction or to comply with the examination requirement under paragraph 8(b) of the Act.

Measurement Canada sought trade sector input in 2010 which formed the basis of the current proposal to regulate thermal energy meters.  The review generated these recommendations found on Measurement Canada’s site page, Consultation on thermal energy meters:

  • require type approval of all thermal energy meters used in trade
  • require initial inspection of all thermal energy meters used in trade
  • require mandatory periodic inspections of all thermal energy meters used in trade
  • exempt measuring devices used in the steam subsector from approval and inspection
  • harmonize requirements with international standards, where appropriate
  • develop alternative service delivery programs to have authorized service providers perform initial inspections and mandatory periodic inspections (if required)

Want more information? 

  1. Learn more about thermal energy metering from our recent blog: Best practices: Heating/Cooling with Thermal Energy
  2. White Paper:  “Thermal Energy Metering: Regulations and Best Practices for the Canadian Market”
  3. QMC is approved as the first national distributor of thermal metering products in Canada by Measurement Canada
  4. QMC is a Measurement Canada Accredited Meter Verifier for electricity and gas meters

For help with your project contact the experts at QMC.

Learn What Makes QMC One of North America's Leading Metering Experts.

Contact us for a consultation on your new or retrofit project today.

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