Energy

Does the UK have a financial misconception of CHP?

Earlier this year, leading rental company Aggreko conducted research into the decentralised energy market which found that 55% of respondents believed solar had the most potential for their business whereas only 14% said combined heat and power (CHP).

Aggreko states that this further highlights the market misconception around CHP not being as easy to finance – also initially highlighted by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) in 2014 in its ‘Factors Affecting The Uptake Of Gas CHP’ report.

The 2014 DECC report states the availability of capital for investment in gas CHP is a common problem highlighted in its research. Fast forward five years, and Aggreko is the only player in the UK to offer a full CHP rental solution, and is now urging industry to consider the technology as a viable decentralised option with very reasonable implementation costs.

CHP has already proven popular across Europe for many years, and Aggreko has been involved in a plethora of successful projects across the world. The company is now launching to market in the UK following a number of pilot schemes. With the BEIS making additional changes to the Industrial Heat Recovery Support programme last week, and the Scottish Government also confirming it will be bringing forward a Heat Networks Bill in the 2019 Programme for Government, Aggreko is hopeful this will help to start shift behaviours around CHP in the UK.

CHP provides users with heat and power needs from one source – lowering carbon emissions by up to 30%. This more sustainable method is supported by the Government, which has introduced a levy that charges non-domestic buildings for the amount of energy they take from the grid, except from with CHP.

Each CHP application is different and Aggreko works with its customers to meet a defined set of objectives in order to provide solutions that are up to 85% efficient. Its latest innovation comes in the form of a standard low temperature hot water (LTHW) CHP solution. LTHW technologies allow users to produce hot water off the engine water jacket, enhanced by an exhaust gas heat exchanger to produce hot water up to 110 degrees centigrade. This results in an even more efficient system than one just producing steam, as more energy can be recovered. Aggreko is also able to offer CHP solutions returning exhaust gases of up to 190 degrees at a variety of pressures.

Matt Parker, Head of Temperature Control at Aggreko comments: “We’ve listened to the market and are now providing a solution to our customers that means no capital expenditure or years of waiting to see a return on investment. We help our customers reduce costs and emissions as well as increasing resilience and energy security.

“In other parts of the world we have delivered solutions to minimise plant footprints in the offshore sector, responded to seasonal fluctuating power needs for agriculture and provided power and heat for planned and unplanned outages. It’s safe to say our expert team are well placed to help UK industry reduce energy costs and carbon emissions via CHP. We hope our latest product launch and campaign will help to alleviate any pre-existing concerns regarding finance.”

Aggreko’s CHP offers constant heat derived from its next generation gas generators. For more information, visit: www.aggreko.com/en-solution/chp

Show More

Related Articles

Back to top button