09 May 2019
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 | A pioneering water source heat pump project to deliver district heating will be showcased at the All Energy 2019 exhibition and conference in Glasgow. Star Renewable Energy is again exhibiting at the event, this year along with Vital Energi and West Dunbartonshire Council, its partners in the scheme which forms part of the regeneration of Queens Quay in Clydebank. For the first time in Scotland, water source heat pumps will take heat from a river to provide hot water and heating to a large development as part of a district heating system. The low carbon energy project delivered by Vital Energi is scheduled to be deployed in September. |
Two 2.6MW heat pumps will deliver heat and hot water to all of the new buildings in the development and some of the existing public buildings. The heat generated will be pumped through 2.5km of district heating pipe connecting local homes, businesses and public buildings such as West Scotland College and Clydebank Library and over 1,000 new homes. West Dunbartonshire Council has funded 60% of the energy project, which has also been supported by the Scottish Government’s Low Carbon Infrastructure Transition Program (LCITP).
The industrial district heat pumps can generate heat three times more effectively than gas boilers, allowing them to offer affordable heat with a much lower carbon footprint than fossil fuels. With no local NOx or SOx air pollutant emissions, this is seen as an even more future proof outcome.
Dave Pearson, director of Star Renewable Energy, said: “There has never been a higher profile for low carbon and clean energy beyond the now ubiquitous wind generation. Heating is far more challenging and, done badly, far more damaging to our environment and our citizens. Many have read the recent Committee on Climate Change advice and concluded we should be burning hydrogen in our cities. We believe in deploying known and proven technologies that can be deployed at scale now.
"If we have learned anything from Greta Thunberg’s determined campaigning it is “do more faster” This is what we have striven to do over the last eight years since proving high efficiency, high temperature heat pumps from a readily available resource of a large river is possible and now in Clydebank we will prove this all over again. With West Dunbartonshire Council and Vital Energi we will spread the word about the successful Queens Quay project, and hopefully inspire others to consider heat pumps as an efficient low cost, low carbon solution for heating systems.”
West Dunbartonshire Councillor Iain McLaren, convener of infrastructure, regeneration and economic development, said: “Providing low carbon heat to the Queens Quay housing development, as well as the college and local businesses, really does put Clydebank at the forefront of renewable energy technology and it is fantastic to see the interest that is being generated by this exciting project. The scheme looks set to deliver huge environmental benefits, as well as financial ones, far into the future. I am really looking forward to the completion of the system, and to see whether we can expand or replicate the idea elsewhere.”
All Energy 2019 takes place May 15-16 at SEC Glasgow and is expected to attract more than 7,000 visitors. Find out more about the project by visiting stand C28 in the energy efficiency and heat zone. Register for the event here and learn more about the Queens Quay regeneration project here.
www.neatpumps.com
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