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New heat network will connect 2,000 homes in Leeds
Leeds City Council, Vital Energi and The Co-Operative Academy have launched one of the UK’s largest new heat networks – the Leeds PIPES Network – marking a major step towards delivering a new flagship heat and hot water system for thousands of homes and businesses in the city.
The £35mn heat network is set to connect nearly 2,000 council homes and numerous business around Leeds City Centre. Developed in partnership between Leeds City Council and energy company Vital Energi, it will connect to the Leeds Recycling and Energy Recovery Facility (RERF) which is operated by Veolia. By taking steam generated at the RERF, converting it into hot water and distributing it along a 16.5 km network of district heating pipes, the heat network will connect homes and businesses in Leeds to a new source of heating.
The network is projected to deliver an annual cut of 22,000 tonnes to the city’s carbon dioxide emissions and to improve air quality around the city. Heat is scheduled to be available for spring 2019, with all homes connected by autumn 2020.
New internal heating systems, as well as a smart metering solution to give residents greater control over their energy consumption, will be provided for 23 apartment blocks. Being connected to the heat network is predicted to offer tenants energy bill savings of between 10% and 25% per year, says Vital Energi.
The Leeds District Heating Network has received £4mn in funding from West Yorkshire Combined Authority and Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership (LEP) through the Leeds City Region Growth Deal – a £1bn package of government investment to accelerate growth and create jobs across the region. An additional £5.8mn of European Regional Development Funding has been received to assist to connect 1,080 council homes in the Lincoln Green area.
