News 40
According to scientists from the University of Sussex, the UK needs ‘heat pump influencers’ to speed up the transition to net zero buildings. While it is clear that a low-carbon energy transition requires a multitude of technologies and policies, the study focusses on heat pumps, which have been shown to be a critical low-carbon option for meeting domestic heating demand, potentially leading the way towards a broader transition
The move provides the foundation for further growth for the roof-integrated solar specialist as it prepares for rapid growth driven by changes to building regulations and its expansion into international markets.
PVTech and TechTalk webinars on solar installations
Jose Alves, UK country manager for Panasonic commented: ‘Panasonic had welcomed the UK Government’s scheme to help the sector and to help reach its net zero targets. We therefore have no hesitation in continuing with both our Green Cashback schemes to help both installers and homeowners to make the switch to renewable air source heat pumps, in a bid to help homeowners to decarbonise their homes and become more energy efficient.’
Once the centrepiece of Boris Johnson’s promise to ‘build back greener’, the £1.5bn programme, offering households grants of up to £10,000 to install insulation or low-carbon heating, leaves the UK without a plan for tackling one of the biggest sources of greenhouse gas emissions and leaves the government falling short on its promise to create tens of thousands of green jobs.
With sustainability and good quality high on the agenda for this new development, making the right specification choices was very important to the developer. Andy Denton, director of Marshgate Properties commented: ‘Selecting sustainable energy options is high on our list of important aspects for the homes we build. We had already installed Panasonic Aquarea Heat Pumps on a previous project a year earlier and have been impressed with the units and their performance. This, together with UK Alternative Energy’s professional approach and proficient installation team, has proven successful for the heating and hot water provision for this latest project.’With the new development’s rural location, mains gas was not an option as an energy source. Marshgate Properties has chosen to continue specifying the Panasonic Aquarea range of renewable air source heat pumps, making the move away from fossil fuels, and to help reduce the carbon footprint of each property, as well as providing on-going efficiencies for residents.
ESG stands for Environmental, Social and Governance, also commonly referred to as sustainability. In a business context, sustainability is about the company’s business model. Hence, how its products and services contribute to sustainable development, and how operations are managed to minimise any negative impact.
Three hundred local authorities across England and Scotland will share the £562m package to fund upgrades to some of the nation’s least energy efficient and fuel-poor homes. The funding will enable investments in low-income households and those living in social houses to solutions such as insulation and replacing gas boilers with low-carbon alternatives, such as heat pumps. As well as benefiting 50,000 households, the Government claims it will also support more than 8,000 energy sector jobs, such as plumbers or builders.
The new subsidiary, located in Ballycastle, will be spearheaded by Pearse McHenry, a longstanding business partner of myenergi. The move will bring the brand’s product range to the masses, helping residents benefit from a more sustainable lifestyle, as well supporting the government’s commitment to cleaner living.
Under the partnership Fleetsolve will represent the MAN industrial brand as service partner and distributor of MAN parts in the UK via Fleetsolve’s Wirral based office and its five regional service centres around the UK, as well as the UK customer services centre.
The webinar will be chaired by Nicholas Doyle, Co-Founder of Chirpy Heat. Nicholas has worked in housing for nearly 30 years and has been responsible for award-winning housing, energy, and environmental initiatives nationally and internationally. In 2018 he was a Co-Founder of Chirpy Heat, the leading provider of services to housing providers on heat networks.
Ireland’s residential retrofitting programme should ensure ventilation is carefully considered to avoid an increase in levels of radon gas in homes, researchers at NUI Galway have found.
Comprising 18 videos divided into three playlists, the videos have been developed to assist both heating engineers and end-users.
The report ‘Longer-Duration Energy Storage: The missing piece to a Net Zero, reliable and low-cost energy future’ estimates that the UK will need at least 30GW of longer-duration energy storage by 2050. However, the report concludes that this target is currently undeliverable based on the present market and regulatory framework.
Two 50MW solar projects have secured planning permissions this week. The first, being EDF Renewables’ Sutton Bridge solar photovoltaic project, granted permission by South Holland District Council and the second being Pegasus Group’s solar and battery storage scheme near Telford.
We stand at the edge of transformation in our energy system and this investment will support that change. Just as the communications industry has been transformed within a generation, from the first land lines at a household level to mobile phones and internet for all in a lifetime, we will see the same degree of transformation to our energy industry. From Altelium’s success in renewable energy and applied battery data – itself the result of an Innovate UK grant win – we know that practical solutions can be developed quickly with the right support. Lithium-ion battery storage though BESS is already working effectively and efficiently, and will transform local community and small-scale commercial energy creation, storage and application. Hydrogen technology coupled with wind and wave energy has the capacity to deliver change on a national scale, with the potential it offers to store energy for longer periods of time or transport it across greater distances. We welcome this investment and the focus it gives on areas where the opportunity for change and benefit for the good of all is greatest.
A multi-partner plan involving the Port of Cromarty Firth has been launched to establish a green hydrogen hub in the Highlands that will see Scotland lead the world in hydrogen technology.
In response to the Chancellor’s announcement that £126m of funding will be made available to create 40,000 new traineeships, along with cash incentives for firms to take on apprentices and a new apprenticeship programme, Mark Wilkins, Technologies and Training Director at Vaillant, comments:
MCS is to consult on a new route to certification, removing one of the current barriers to participation in the scheme.
The National Gas Centre for Excellence (NGCFE) has opened the doors of its 6,000 sq. ft state-of-the-art centre in Featherstone, West Yorkshire to tackle the national shortage in qualified heating engineers with high-quality training focused on the needs of the installers and engineers.
The UK’s first houses to demonstrate the use of hydrogen-fuelled appliances in a real-world setting are to be built by Northern Gas Networks (NGN), the company has announced.
Northern Gas Networks (NGN) has completed the project as part of H21, in collaboration with fellow gas distribution networks Cadent, Scottish Gas Networks and Wales & West Utilities. It builds on the earlier H21 Leeds City Gate project, which established a hydrogen conversion of the gas grid was technically possible and economically viable.
The well-known issue with many renewable technologies is inconsistency in supply. Whilst the UK might have pledged to create 40 GW of installed offshore capacity by 2030, the supply is very dependent on it being windy. On days when it isn’t, we must fall back on stored electricity.
Panasonic are currently offering installers £800 and their customers an additional £600 as part of their Green Install Cashback Scheme and Green Homes Cashback scheme.