Cofely pushes ahead with district energy in East London
The low-carbon regeneration of East London has taken a major step forward with the acquisition by Cofely of the energy centre connected to the ExCel exhibition and conference centre in East London. The transaction makes possible future development to link this scheme to Cofely’s existing district-energy network at the Queen Elizabeth Park and Stratford.
Cofely has also signed a 40-year energy-services contract with ExCel to supply heat, chilled water and CHP-generated electricity to the venue.
Wilfrid Petrie, chairman of Cofely UK, says, ‘We have plans to link this system to our existing district-energy scheme in Stratford — creating greater opportunities for end users to benefit from low-carbon, green energy.’
The ExCel energy centre currently has the capacity for 18 MW of heating and 5 MW of cooling, but the envelope of the building can contain significantly more plant and was built to supply energy to the wider area.
Cofely will initially install 2 MW(e) of CHP and more cooling plant.
When the ExCel network is connected to the existing network owned and operated by Cofely in East London, the total heating capacity will be 230 MW, sufficient to heat 45 00 homes. The network will also be able to serve additional hotels, offices and homes as the area is regenerated over the next 20 years.
