Government targets major source of emissions with £270m Green Heat Network Fund
发布时间：2024年6月4日 06:21
155
Heating buildings is one of the largest sources of UK carbon emissions, accounting for 21% (Credit: Shutterstock)
A new £270m fund will support the introduction of low-carbon heat networks in England, helping cut a major source of carbon emissions.
A new £270m fund will support the introduction of low-carbon heat networks in England, helping cut a major source of carbon emissions.
The government announced the Green Heat Network Fund today (7 September). The money will be used for low-carbon technology such as heat pumps, solar and geothermal energy, which will enable more towns and cities to adopt heat networks from 2022.
Heat networks supply heat to buildings from a central source, avoiding the need for households and workplaces to have individual, energy-intensive heating solutions such as gas boilers. There are currently over 14,000 heat networks in the UK, providing heating and hot water to around 480,000 people – about 2% of the overall demand for heating.
The systems are the only way to use heat from large-scale renewable energy projects and recovered heat sources – like the heat from large rivers, or urban recovered heat such as from the London Underground – a government announcement said.
The previous Heat Networks Investment Project has provided more than £165m of funding for schemes across England and Wales since 2018. The successor scheme will “play a significant role in kickstarting market demand for heat pumps, which will drive down costs for consumers and deliver a mix of low-carbon heating solutions as we incentivise people to gradually transition away from fossil fuel boilers over the next 15 years,” the announcement said.
Heating buildings is one of the largest sources of UK carbon emissions, accounting for 21%. The Green Heat Network Fund is expected to fund an estimated 10.3m tonnes of total carbon savings by 2050, or the equivalent of taking 4.5m cars in England off the road for a year.
Energy minister Lord Callanan said: “Finding a mix of innovative solutions to how we heat our homes in the most affordable way is going to be vital as we support people to gradually transition away from gas boilers over the next 15 years.”
The government also published an assessment of the potential for future heat networks across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland today. The study identifies areas that could be best placed to support future heat network projects, and how much heat could be supplied by them.
Want the best engineering stories delivered straight to your inbox? The Professional Engineering newsletter gives you vital updates on the most cutting-edge engineering and exciting new job opportunities. To sign up, click here.
Content published by Professional Engineering does not necessarily represent the views of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.
Heat networks supply heat to buildings from a central source, avoiding the need for households and workplaces to have individual, energy-intensive heating solutions such as gas boilers. There are currently over 14,000 heat networks in the UK, providing heating and hot water to around 480,000 people – about 2% of the overall demand for heating.
The systems are the only way to use heat from large-scale renewable energy projects and recovered heat sources – like the heat from large rivers, or urban recovered heat such as from the London Underground – a government announcement said.
The previous Heat Networks Investment Project has provided more than £165m of funding for schemes across England and Wales since 2018. The successor scheme will “play a significant role in kickstarting market demand for heat pumps, which will drive down costs for consumers and deliver a mix of low-carbon heating solutions as we incentivise people to gradually transition away from fossil fuel boilers over the next 15 years,” the announcement said.
Heating buildings is one of the largest sources of UK carbon emissions, accounting for 21%. The Green Heat Network Fund is expected to fund an estimated 10.3m tonnes of total carbon savings by 2050, or the equivalent of taking 4.5m cars in England off the road for a year.
Energy minister Lord Callanan said: “Finding a mix of innovative solutions to how we heat our homes in the most affordable way is going to be vital as we support people to gradually transition away from gas boilers over the next 15 years.”
The government also published an assessment of the potential for future heat networks across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland today. The study identifies areas that could be best placed to support future heat network projects, and how much heat could be supplied by them.
Want the best engineering stories delivered straight to your inbox? The Professional Engineering newsletter gives you vital updates on the most cutting-edge engineering and exciting new job opportunities. To sign up, click here.
Content published by Professional Engineering does not necessarily represent the views of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.
Share:
Read more related articles
Environment and sustainability Power and Energy
Read more related articles
Environment and sustainability Power and Energy
