Alfa Laval calls for ‘big picture thinking’ on heat network zoning rollout
Ahead of the rollout of the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero’s (DESNZ) heat network zones, Alfa Laval is calling for the long-term implementation to go beyond that of just district heating, with a view to creating a nationwide district energy infrastructure.
The initial rollout of DESNZ’s zoning programme began with the identification of 28 pilot locations where heat networks are likely to grow or be built out in the future. Following this, six areas across the UK – Bristol, Leeds, Plymouth, Sheffield, Stockport, and two London sites – are set to be the beneficiaries of £5.8m in shared government funding in order to help establish the zoning model, with construction set to commence in 2026. A total of 21 zoning maps have now been published.
As part of the scheme, it is expected that district heating will be the lowest cost of energy within each zone, with the wider goal of growing total demand from 3% in 2024 to 20% by 2050.
However, with the current rollout only legislating for district heating at present, Neil Parry, Alfa Laval’s Global Head of District Energy, is highlighting the necessity for district cooling, and how this can create a national district energy infrastructure and lead to year-round greater utilisation of waste heat and a more balanced energy system.
He said: “The UK is experiencing increasing temperatures due to climate change. By 2050, we will have just as much need for district cooling as we do for district heating, which is why it would be a critical misstep if the ongoing rollout was only limited to the latter.
“Beyond this, the integration of both technologies together is also fundamental to the concept of district energy, which will be critical to tapping into the nation’s waste energy potential and forging a credible path to Net Zero.”
According to Neil, two thirds of the heat required to heat and cool buildings in the UK is currently wasted. Without change, this figure is set to rise to four-fifths by 2050.
He continued: “The network itself can act as a thermal store – capturing excess heat, such as that from a data centre or industrial processes, and then delivering it as required to the connected buildings. The heat in the network can also be used to produce cooling, via an absorption heat pump, for example, and therefore the energy in both the heating and cooling networks balance themselves, based upon the connected buildings’ demand. If we captured our current waste heat in this manner, we would be able to reduce the heating demand for buildings by 66% overnight.”
