Planning permission has been granted for a new £12 million energy centre at Queens Quay in Clydebank – which the developers claim will make it ‘the greenest town in Scotland’.
Construction of the energy centre for the district heating system is due to start this month (weather permitting) with the network being commissioned and generating heat by autumn 2018.
The Queens Quay’s community heating network will be the largest and most ambitious in Scotland and will enable valuable energy, which is often wasted in power generation and industrial processes, to be captured and supplied to householders and businesses directly.
The 100% carbon-free system is designed on a modular basis to allow expansion, with the ability to include the nearby Golden Jubilee Hospital as well as the wider Clydebank area making the network effective and efficient from both technical and financial perspectives.
Water source heat pumps will extract water from the River Clyde, giving the system a direct link to natural resources. The energy centre will also accommodate gas boilers, pressurisation units and distribution pumps together with a building control and management system to operate and monitor the system.
West Dunbartonshire Council will own, operate and maintain the entire heating system, ensuring security of supply and reduced tariffs for customers. The Scot-Govt provided £6 million of funding towards the system via its Low Carbon Infrastructure Transition Programme with the cooncil covering the remaining £6 million.
Within the energy centre water source heat pumps will extract water from the River Clyde, giving the system a direct link to natural resources.
The energy centre will also accommodate gas boilers, pressurisation units and distribution pumps together with a building control and management system to operate and monitor the system.
Councillor Patrick McGlinchey, convener of the council’s regeneration and economic development committee, said: “The council will lead the municipal energy supply company which will support the project giving us the opportunity to not only generate an income, but to further expand the scheme throughout Clydebank.
“This is also great news for our residents as it will allow the council to offer residents a reduced tariff for their heating supply and in return help residents who may be facing fuel poverty.”
8 Jan 2018
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