Hermitage River Project
A highly innovative renewable energy heating system, which converts energy from the River Thames into heat, is being unveiled by a community river project.
The Hermitage River Project is a community programme near Tower Bridge. It is made up of riverboats, many of which are over 200 years old, and a community centre. Its aim is to teach people about river life as well as provide living accommodation for the boat’s owners. When the project was formed it was determined to be eco-friendly. Working with green energy specialist ISO Energy the project invested in a renewable energy water source heat pump to provide heating and hot water to its dockside community buildings.
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ISO Energy managing director Justin Broadbent said the heat pump, made by German firm Stiebel Eltron one of the world’s leading manufacturers of heat pumps, will save five tonnes of carbon emissions a year and run at a fifth of the cost of an electricity or immersion heating system. “This heat pump is cutting edge technology and it is the future,” he said. “It extracts heat out of the Thames from ambient water temperature. That is then compressed up to 10 times to provide under floor heating and up to 20 times to generate hot water. The only cost is the electricity to power the heat pump – the rest is free. Although this project is only small in scale the same method of transferring heat from water through a heat pump is being used to provide heat and hot water to the city of Stockholm.” |
Water water heat pump WPW 7 |
Stiebel Eltron’s London specification manager Neil Jimpson said the project is ‘cast iron proof’ of how going green can save money as well as carbon emissions. “Gas and oil will one day run out,” he said. “And today their price is volatile and expensive. This water pump shows there is a cheaper green alternative form of heating. And the great thing is heat pumps can work by extracting heat from the ground or the air so they can work virtually anywhere. Moreover the Government has just launched a new grant scheme which can pay for up to 50% of the cost of installing green energy products in a domestic, public or commercial property. When you consider heating is responsible for almost half of UK energy use and carbon emissions you can see how important heat pumps are in helping the UK go green.”
Mr Jimpson said Stiebel Eltron has recently launched a free ‘one stop shop’ green energy advice service for London. This includes offering to undertake a free energy efficiency survey of any residential or commercial premises. “The report will examine the heat loss and heat demands of the building and detail a set of recommendations to slash energy bills and carbon emissions,” he said. “It will also detail the financial incentives for going green.”
Renewable energy background
In June 2008 the UK Government launched its energy strategy proposals with the aim of creating a green economy. The strategy will be backed by investment of £100bn over 12 years. European Union members agreed in 2007 to source 20% of the EU’s energy from renewable sources. As part of this commitment the UK must increase its share of renewable from 1.5% in 2006 to 20% by 2020. This increase in the use of renewables will be across heat, electricity generation and transport.
The Government renewable energy strategy estimates that 160,000 new jobs will be created by the ‘green revolution’ in the UK by 2020.
In addition to this target the Government has set its own target of reducing the UK’s carbon emissions by 60% by 2050.
The average UK household produces over 5 tonnes of CO2 emissions per year with space and water heating accounting for more than 73% of this.
At least 70% of all non-domestic buildings will still be in use by 2050 so there is a huge market for converting existing buildings to renewable energy.
Hermitage River Projects
Hermitage River Projects Limited is a charity based on the River Thames at The Hermitage (currently under construction). The Hermitage is located on the north bank of the River Thames in Wapping off the Old Hermitage Wharf 400m downstream of Tower Bridge.
Hermitage River Projects aims to:
- To promote knowledge and understanding of the River Thames, its history, its ecology and the various
- To undertake educational initiatives that increase understanding of navigational and boat handling skills.
- To undertake cultural initiatives that promote and celebrate river heritage
- To encourage, facilitate and promote the use, preservation and restoration of historic vessels.
Visitor berths
Hermitage River Projects will be offering short-term berths to visiting historic vessels, commercial vessels and private yachts.
