Low-carbon heat networks are the norm for coastal communities in Europe – why not here too?
4 min read
As chair of the coastal caucus of more than 60 Labour MPs, and as a member of Parliament’s Energy Security and Net Zero Select Committee, I know how vital low-carbon solutions are for delivering not just on the government’s clean energy mission but also on our mission to lower bills and deliver higher living standards for coastal areas like mine.
That starts with cleaning up the UK’s energy system to reduce its reliance on imported gas. In the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Britain was hit harder than any other country in western Europe due to an overreliance on gas, which is used to generate about 40 per cent of our electricity and heat 85 per cent of our homes. This dependency cost us dearly, as households and businesses up and down the country struggled to pay their energy bills.
While Labour’s Clean Power by 2030 commitment will deliver energy security for our electricity system, we need an equally transformational plan for how we heat our homes. One of the most exciting opportunities for constituencies like mine in East Thanet could be in the rollout of low-carbon heat networks, with coastal towns like Plymouth and Worthing, as well as East Thanet businesses such as Watkins Energy, leading the way in unlocking much-needed inward investment.
Heat networks allow us to harness the natural resources of our coastal areas, for example by tapping into the ambient heat of the sea using ultra-efficient water-source heat pumps. The Mersey Heat project in Liverpool uses the Leeds-Liverpool canal to provide heat and hot water to up to 6,700 homes, saving 2,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions in the process – the equivalent of taking 1,000 cars off the road.
These aren’t new technologies. Across Europe, low-carbon heat networks are often the norm for coastal communities. In Ejsberg, Denmark, the huge potential of the sea is being harnessed for the region’s heat network, with two industrial scale seawater heat pumps now providing heating to 25,000 households across the local area, powered by electricity from a local wind farm. In Marseille, France, a heat network system captures the energy of the Mediterranean Sea to provide heating, cooling, and hot water to a 2.7-hectare development, generating an 80 per cent reduction in CO2 emissions compared to conventional fossil-fuel based systems. There is nothing stopping us from building ambitious projects like these across coastal towns and cities in the UK.
Taking the long-term decisions that build a thriving local economy and unlock the green jobs of the future is critical. Heat networks could create 15,000 direct jobs over this Parliament, and experience through the Green Heat Network Fund to date shows that around 60 per cent of these are local jobs. These economic benefits can be replicated in coastal communities up and down the country, and we need to embrace this opportunity.
Heat networks are a crucial part of this puzzle, and are already delivering coastal jobs
The Labour government is committed to introducing heat network zoning – a policy that will identify where heat networks are the lowest-cost solution to de-carbonising heating. Plymouth is leading the way in demonstrating the boon this could represent for coastal communities, through its involvement in the Advanced Zoning Programme, which pilots the policy. This analysis has identified two viable networks in the city with a capital value of around £350m. Both powered by local recoverable heat opportunities, including the local water treatment plant and an NHS medical waste incinerator. The estimated annual carbon savings from the build out of these two zones could save 31,000 tonnes of CO2 – over three per cent of the city’s current emissions – while reducing the energy bills of local households and businesses.
Heat networks are a crucial part of this puzzle, and are already delivering coastal jobs, breaking Britain’s reliance on imported gas, and reducing our bills. It’s time we grabbed these opportunities and put our coastal towns at the forefront of the transition from fossil fuels.
Polly Billington is Labour MP for East Thanet
