Manitoba's geothermal industry is on the rebound after the disappointing news that the systems wouldn't be used in Winnipeg's new Waverley West neighbourhood.

At the industry's second annual conference in Winnipeg on the weekend, the province announced it would spend more than $300,000 over the next three years to help train installers and to inspect and monitor completed projects. 

Industry leaders say it's just what they need to ensure a quality product and boost consumer confidence.

"It's a great day for our industry," said John Kubilanski, vice-chair of the Manitoba Geothermal Energy Alliance. "We want the people of Manitoba to feel confident in geothermal technology."

During the past several months, it became clear that the massive new Waverley West subdivision in southwest Winnipeg was not going to be the geothermal gem developers had initially pitched.

Provincial officials said technical difficulties related to the size of the neighbourhood's lots made it too expensive for large-scale installation of geothermal systems in the 186 homes that make up the subdivision's first phase.

Individual homeowners, however, can opt to install systems on their own at a cost of $20,000 to $30,000.

Still, the industry applauded a small Waverley West victory on the weekend: Southern Comfort Mechanical signed a contract to install a geothermal unit in a KDR Design Builders show home in the neighbourhood.

"The province won't make it mandatory, but this is a free society and ultimately, the decision is up to the consumer," said Mike Millard, spokesman for the Niverville-based company.

Millard said the government should have consulted with industry before carving up lots too small for less expensive geothermal systems.

However, with the right system, geothermal heat pumps are still feasible in up to 40 per cent of new homes, he said.

Meanwhile, a northern First Nations community is introducing geothermal heat to a 34-unit housing complex.

Four units of the complex in Cross Lake, 530 kilometres north of Winnipeg, are already using geothermal systems, which take heat from the ground, transmit it through a fluid, pump it into a house and convert it to warm air in the winter. In the summer, the process is reversed to cool the house.

Band Coun. Donnie McKay, who is responsible for housing on the reserve, said the decision to go geothermal was made to be more environmentally friendly and cut energy costs.

"Our community developer has developed a plan in our community to — due to the shortage of land and the shortage of housing and hydro bills being so high — so we felt that this project will be very economically viable," he said.

In additional to lowering monthly heating costs, the geothermal units are expected to reduce moisture in the homes, he said, lessening the chances of mould forming.

Manitoba leads the country in geothermal installations: about 5,000 geothermal heat pumps are at work in the province, 920 installed in the past year.