This programme will enable the SEP to test innovative solutions to produce low-carbon affordable heat for institutions and businesses in the city. Most of the city’s greenhouse gas emissions are from gas-fired boilers, and we need an alternative to solve this crucial piece of the decarbonisation puzzle. The SEP will explore innovative approaches to decarbonise organisations with significant heat demand in the city, dependent on technology, funding, and stakeholder engagement.
The government have a Clean Power 2030 Action Plan [https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/677bc80399c93b7286a396d6/clean-power-2030-action-plan-main-report.pdf], this details a new era of clean energy and will offer households security from volatile fossil fuel markets. In the UK, heating contributes to 38% of CO2 emissions, with 21% from buildings and currently only 3% of heating comes from district heat networks. The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) aims to increase this to 20 - 40%, with 5 million connections by 2050. The Advanced Zoning Programme is an initiative by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) [https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/proposals-for-heat-network-zoning-2023/heat-network-zoning-consultation-summary] to accelerate the delivery of heat network development within planned heat network zones. The target is 15 zones to begin construction from 2026 and Coventry is one of the pilot areas.
Bring Energy [https://bringenergy.com/networks/] are working with Coventry City Council to expand the existing district heat network - this innovative scheme utilises recovered heat from an Energy from Waste (EfW) [https://www.cswdc.co.uk/] plant to offer a reliable energy solution for the city centre. The scheme provides low-carbon large scale heat to public buildings within the city centre and the network is growing. Coventry Council House, The Wave (pictured), Coventry Cathedral and Friargate all benefit from the city's district heating network which was one of the first in the UK to use energy from waste technology.