Seven low carbon heat networks have secured grants from the Green Heat Network Fund (GHNF). Fund administrators Triple Point Heat Networks Investment Management said the projects have secured a £91 million share of the fund.
Each of the networks have been designed to address sustainable, low-carbon transitions at a local level, supporting communities and businesses whilst collectively driving the UK towards its 2050 net zero target.
• East London Energy has been awarded £1.76 million from GHNF for the construction of an extension to its existing district energy network in East London to two new sites in the Pudding Mill Lane area supported by the installation of a water source heat pump at the Stratford City Energy Centre, due to be operational in June 2023. The extension will deliver 2.7GWh per year of low carbon heating and hot water to new developments which are anticipated to require heat from 2024.
• 1Energy Group has been awarded £20 million for a heat network in Bradford, with the largest installation of a large air source heat pump (ASHP) so far in the UK. Operation is planned for early 2025
• 1Energy Group has also been awarded over £25 million for an energy network to deliver heat across Rotherham Town Centre. It will extract heat from a range of local heat sources via large heat pumps to supply heat and hot water to residents and businesses, including public sector buildings. The network will deliver 43.2GWh of heat in phase 1 using an 8MW heat pump. The network is expected to be fully operational from 2027, with first heat provision from early 2025.
• Cornwall Council has been awarded over £22 million for the Langarth District Heat Network, with heat from the UK’s first deep geothermal project. The heat source will deliver in the region of 50GWh/year and is expected to provide green energy to a new 3,800-unit development and Royal Cornwall Hospital, with potential for further connections in the future. Up to 26MW/h per year of existing commercial gas fired heating could be replaced in the Threemilestone area in addition to the new homes.
• Kirklees Council has been awarded over £8 million for the Huddersfield District Energy Network. Excess heat will be recovered from an existing energy-from-waste (EfW) plant and distributed to public and private sector buildings. The heat network is expected to deliver 7.6GWh of heat in its first year, rising to 14.2GWh and 21.7GWh in its second and third years respectively
• The East Riding of Yorkshire Council has been awarded £12 million for construction of the Goole district heat network, which will recover waste heat from a local industrial source in the area for use in residential, commercial, and industrial sites. The scheme will use two heat recovery boilers, as well as a back-up air to water heat exchanger fitted to a duct of excavated hot air.
• Reading University has been awarded £2.2 million to expand and decarbonise its energy centre at the Whiteknights campus, upgrading the current CHP-led network to a low carbon open loop ground source heat pump from the below-ground aquifer. The upgraded system will provide over 50% of the current heat network load, with additional plans for a small cooling network to be delivered by December 2025. The Whiteknights energy centre also stores excess heat generated in two large thermal stores for times of high-demand.