Leeds City Council take strides to decarbonise the city's buildings, with investments in the residential housing stock as well as public buildings • A new Heat Networks Planning Database has been launched by The Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy to provide an accurate overview of planned and ongoing heat networks projects in the UK • Two large, sustainable property developments in the North East of England and Edinburgh respectively incorporate different technologies for sustainable heating • Read more about sustainable heating and cooling developments in the UK in the April news update
Leeds City Council is investing £100 million to improve the energy efficiency of council housing, primarily funded through housing revenue. To achieve the best outcome for tenants and the environment, the city partnered with University of Leeds to identify the most beneficial improvements to be made. Improvements include the use of district heating networks, air and ground source heat pumps, solar panels and external wall insulation, which will contribute to warmer homes, lower energy bills and a reduction of the city’s carbon emissions.
Read more in article by South Leeds Life
Read more in article by Energy Live News
Furthemore, Leeds City Council has secured £25 million to reduce the carbon emissions of 38 publicly owned buildings, including primary schools, elderly care homes, offices and leisure centres. Carbon emission reductions will be achieved through increased connections to the district heating network, air source heat pumps, solar panels and environmental lighting. The improvements are estimated to reduce the city’s carbon emissions by almost 4,000 tonnes while creating 338 jobs.
Read more in article by South Leeds Life
The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) have been tracking and publishing the progress of renewable energy projects through the Renewable Energy Planning Database since 2014. Now, that database has been extended with a Heat Networks Planning Database which provides a snapshot of communal and district heat network projects through inception, planning, construction, operation and decommissioning. The database will be updated quarterly, and aims to provide a better overview of planned and ongoing projects to facilitate procurement and construction projects, and improve market confidence.
Access the Heat Networks Planning Database
The new property development, named Edinburgh Park Southern Phase, will include over 1800 residential units, 1 million sq ft of commercial space, a healthcare centre and electric vehicle charging points. Vattenfall has been awarded a contract by Parabola, the real-estate group behind the development, to supply the entire Edinburgh Park Southern Phase with electrical infrastructure, which will make it one of the largest all-electric property developments in the UK. The infrastructure will be installed by an Independent Connection Provider, after which Vattenfall IDNO will take ownership of operations and maintenance of the electrical network.
Stuart Dawson, managing director of Vattenfall Networks, said of the project: “This site puts Edinburgh firmly among the leaders in the race to become the UKs first net zero city and provides the blueprint for changing the way we heat and power our homes, offices and buildings.”
Read more in article by The Herald
The urban regenerator company Muse Developments have received approval from South Tyneside Council to bring forward their 50,000 sq ft office building development named The Glassworks. The building is designed to be free of fossil fuels and ultra-low energy, run on 100% renewable electricity. High resource and energy efficiency for the building will be ensured through e.g. high levels of insulation to improve thermal efficiency and a two-stage air source heat pump to supply the building with sustainable heating. Furthemore, the building will have the ability to connect to a future district heating network.
Read more in press release from Muse Developments
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