Oxbow, Saskatchewan · Recreational Refrigeration
The Town of Oxbow's Arena Upgrade Is Sparking Change Across Saskatchewan
Oxbow Rallies as a Community to Replace a 40-Year-Old Arena Ice Plant
Oxbow, Saskatchewan, recently replaced its failing community ice rink refrigeration system with a modern, efficient ammonia plant, funded largely through federal FCM grant and loan programs along with local fundraising. Neighboring towns are now looking to Oxbow’s experience as they weigh the same decision.
A Plant on Borrowed Time
The Oxbow Community Rink features an 80-by-180-foot artificial ice surface and four sheets of curling ice. The town installed its original ice plant in 1986, and after 40 years, it was overdue for replacement.
"The current ice plant’s failure poses a significant threat to our ability to maintain crucial youth programs and community events, impacting our residents’ physical, mental, and social well-being,"
the Recreation Board's ice plant proposal explained.
Lane Nicholls joined the town in 2022, first as an assistant and later as recreation facilities manager. By the time he stepped into the role, the same message had circulated for years: the rink needed a new plant.
"We were doing a band-aid fix every year. When I became manager, we decided we couldn't keep doing that. It was very unreliable. You couldn't have huge tournaments at the rink just because we didn't know if we'd have a plant come tournament time."
Lane Nicholls, Recreation Facilities Manager, Town of Oxbow
With the old system, Nicholls said, the season had to be shortened by about a month so it would not put too much strain on the facility, Each year, the plant went down for a few days, and when it did, the town hoped it was cold enough outside to keep the ice intact until repairs were finished. In 2025, the plant went down right before the town's Cowboy Christmas event, forcing a scramble to make repairs in time.
CIMCO had first made an impression on the town in 2023, when the company presented on government grants and decarbonization funding at the Saskatchewan Parks and Recreation Association’s (SPRA) Spring Training Symposium in Humboldt. Not long after, the town invited CIMCO to bid on a tender that was closing within two days, barely enough time to put together a proper submission, but the team made the trip anyway.
That early effort stuck with Oxbow, and after repeated breakdowns, Nicholls called on CIMCO directly in April 2024 for a plant assessment and a leak check. A CIMCO mechanic diagnosed the plant, worked through a list of repairs, and got its controls functioning reliably again, buying the town the time it needed to plan a permanent solution without interrupting hockey, curling, or figure skating.
Interview with Lane Nicholls from Town of Oxbow at Innovation Conference 2026.
Funding the Fix
With the plant stabilized, the town turned its attention to a permanent fix and pursued multiple funding avenues.
The town turned to CIMCO’s grant assistance program to help fund a new refrigeration system for its arena. Jordan Dermo, who leads CIMCO’s grant funding work, helped Oxbow apply for a greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction feasibility study grant through the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM). The grant covered 80% of the study’s cost. The resulting study assessed four town-owned buildings: the arena, the memorial hall, the swimming pool, and the water treatment plant. It compared the 30-year cost of standard like-for-like equipment replacement against energy-efficient upgrades and add-ons, giving Oxbow a long-term capital plan that extended well beyond the rink.
Completing the study also made Oxbow eligible for FCM’s capital funding stream. CIMCO helped the town apply to the program, which provides a combination of grant and green loan funding for 80% of project costs.
Once the plant replacement moved into its next phase, CIMCO also pursued a provincial incentive through SaskPower on Oxbow’s behalf. The town qualified based on the energy efficiency and estimated kWh savings of switching to an ammonia plant.
Weighing the Options
The Oxbow community rink's old refrigeration plant operated with fluorinated (f-gas) refrigerants, starting with R22 and later switching to R449A after a series of failures. The town's first instinct was to consider a like-for-like replacement: another f-gas-based plant. However, after reviewing the feasibility study, the town chose ammonia (R717) instead, a natural refrigerant.
Operated with fluorinated (f-gas) refrigerants, starting with R22 and later switching to R449A after a series of failures.
An 80 TR ammonia (R717) system — a natural refrigerant — designed, built, and installed by CIMCO by August 2026, in time for the new season.
Working with energy analysis partner Enerlife, CIMCO compared the ammonia solution against a newer f-gas refrigerant that isn't currently being phased out. They modeled energy use, maintenance needs, and long-term reliability for each. The projected difference in monthly operating costs was significant enough to shift the project's direction, and Nicholls said presenting those numbers to council was a turning point. "That monthly saving really helped drive the project forward," he said.
Beyond reduced operating costs, ammonia offered other advantages the town valued. Unlike most f-gas refrigerants, it faces no comparable phase-out timeline, and ammonia systems rely on industrial-grade equipment built for maintainability and a long service life. It also carries a strong safety record and remains widely used in recreation facilities.
The environmental case mattered to the town too. The new ammonia plant's energy efficiency and zero global warming potential (GWP) are expected to significantly lower the facility's carbon footprint and GHG emissions compared with the old system.
"The reduction in emissions aligns with our commitment to environmental stewardship, making this project an investment in community infrastructure and a proactive step towards a greener, more sustainable future. Embracing this greener option allows the community to actively contribute to the global effort to combat climate change while ensuring the sustainability of its local activities.
Oxbow & District Recreation Board
CIMCO met with the town in person throughout the process, in progressively larger groups, building toward a joint meeting of town council, the rec board, and CIMCO where the final system was selected. As part of the feasibility study, CIMCO presented tiered options, outlining what each investment level would look like and what it would take to qualify for available funding. Nicholls recalled a spreadsheet Dermo and Enerlife put together for one meeting, comparing the options side by side and showing exactly what each one qualified for under the grant.
"Once that was laid out, the solution was pretty clear. An f-gas plant just didn't have enough points to qualify for the grant, so that option was off the table right away."
Lane Nicholls
CIMCO designed, built, and installed the 80 TR ammonia system by August 2026, in time for the new season. Rather than building a new, portable, skid-mounted system as originally considered, the team reused the facility's existing plant room, saving the community money.
The Regional Ripple Effect
Word of Oxbow’s project has spread. CIMCO’s Scot Johnson, who has led the relationship with Oxbow from the start, said the project’s visibility and Nicholls’s willingness to talk about it have made Oxbow a reference point for other communities facing the same challenge of aging infrastructure and funding gaps.
"The community feedback has been incredible. You don't get many wins like this." Nicholls said.
CIMCO built its grant assistance program specifically to help municipalities navigate Canada’s infrastructure funding landscape, and the company considers it one of the most in-depth offered by any industrial contractor in the region. To date, it has helped secure funding for roughly 150 GHG reduction feasibility studies through the FCM program.
"We have yet to have one not approved. There's no financial risk to our customers with this process. If it doesn't get approved, they don't have to move forward with it."
Jordan Dermo, CIMCO
Since that first presentation in Humboldt, Saskatchewan has become one of CIMCO’s most active provinces for grant-supported project work relative to its population.
A Replicable Model
Oxbow's story illustrates what CIMCO's grant assistance program is designed to do. It helps municipalities move past the upfront cost of a major capital project and toward a plan that accounts for the full picture, funding included. A feasibility study gave Oxbow's council the confidence to choose a system built for the next several decades, not just the next budget cycle. And the results are now giving neighboring towns a reason to start that same conversation before their own plants force the issue.
For any town still running on borrowed time with an aging refrigeration system, Oxbow's experience offers a clear lesson: with the right planning and the right funding partner, replacement does not have to wait for a crisis.
Connect with CIMCO today to learn more.