Manitoba Hydro Place is the headquarters building of Manitoba Hydro, the electric power and natural gas utility in the province of Manitoba, Canada. Located at 360 Portage Avenue in downtown Winnipeg and connected to the Winnipeg Walkway system, Manitoba Hydro Place received LEED Platinum certification in May 2012, making it the most energy efficient office tower in North America and the only office tower in Canada to receive the LEED Platinum rating.
Opened as Winnipeg's 4th tallest building in September 2009, the 21-story office tower brought together 1650 employees from 15 suburban locations into one 695000sqft highrise on a full, downtown block. With the design's plan view resembling a capital letter "A", the project comprises two 18-story twin wings framing three 6-story, south-facing atria . The design's stepped, three-story, street-scaled podium contains retail space as well as an interior pedestrian street and a single level of parking, partially below grade — over which sit the atria, office wings and their 3-story mechanical penthouse. Total project cost was C$278m.
The building's bioclimatic, energy-efficient design features a 377ft tall solar chimney, a geo-thermal HVAC system using 280 five-inch tubes bored 380 feet into an underground aquifer, 100% fresh air (24 hours a day, year round, regardless of outside temperature) and a one-meter-wide double exterior wall with computer-controlled motorized vents that adjust the building's exterior skin throughout the day and evening. Together, the various elements of the design enable a 70% energy savings over a typical large office tower.
In 2009, CBC News called Manitoba Hydro Place (MHP) one of "the most energy-efficient office towers in the world and the Toronto Star called MHP the "most important building in Canada."