DOUG STEWART SPEAKS AT GREEN BUILD EXPO

27 May 2010

A ground breaking combined heat and power project saves residents 80% off their fuel bills

A groundbreaking combined heat and power project that has saved residents 80% off their fuel bills was the focus of a seminar hosted by Green Energy UK founder and chief executive Doug Stewart at the Green Build Expo in Manchester on 27 May.

Delegates at the exhibition and conference, which promotes sustainability in the construction industry, learned how the project from the Aberdeen Heat and Power Company and Green Energy UK is being rolled out across several blocks of flats and public buildings in Aberdeen and has improved energy ratings, slashed fuel costs and saved carbon emissions.

Doug Stewart says: “CHP is such a common sense technology because it uses one fuel source to create heating, hot water and electricity – nothing is wasted. This is in complete contrast to the UK’s conventional power stations which don’t capture heat when generating electricity and are therefore wasting the same amount of heat needed to provide heat and hot water to all buildings in the country.”

In the Aberdeen areas of Seaton, Stockethill and Hazelhead, CHP plants which are smaller than a three-bed house provide electricity, heat and hot water to more than 700 flats and several public buildings, including a school and swimming pool, leisure centre, ice rink, sports changing facility and beachfront ballroom. The project forms part of a citywide strategy to deliver affordable, reliable, controllable heat and is the result of a study by Aberdeen City Council that found multi-storey flats to be the least thermal efficient of its properties. The electricity generated is bought by Green Energy UK and put into the National Grid for its customers.

Doug concludes: “We believe there are many energy sources and technologies that could be geared up quickly to help meet the UK’s energy needs, and CHP is one of them. The construction industry has an important role to play in the wider adoption of CHP by making it an integral part of building and refurbishment processes.” Since the CHP units were installed in Aberdeen, carbon emissions are down 45%, energy efficiency ratings have more than doubled to between 6.2 and 8.1, and heating costs are now £7.75 per week compared with previous weekly running costs of £38 per flat. By not having individual meters and instead charging residents by ‘heat-with-rent’, the heating charge is VAT exempt and reduces the residents’ costs. The initiative won the Chartered Institute of Housing’s UK Housing Awards for ‘Increasing Environmental Sustainability’ and the top accolade, ‘Outstanding Achievement in Housing’. The project continues to grow, and next up is an installation of CHP units for around 100 flats in other parts of the city.

Visit http://www.greenbuildexpo.co.uk/ to learn more about Green Build Expo.