Thursday 8 April 2021
Centrica begins UK-wide heat pump project to improve energy efficiency of sanctuary social housing stock
The first installs have been completed as part of an ambitious national low carbon heating scheme, being delivered by Centrica for leading social landlord, Sanctuary Housing.
Between now and the end of October, nearly 600 properties across the North, North West, Midlands, East and South West will have their existing heating systems replaced with low carbon alternatives.
Each property will be fitted with an air source heat pump, complete with a smart cylinder, intelligent heating control, new radiators, and pipework. The exact specification will be tailored to suit a variety of one, two, three and four-bedroom homes, with the aim of bringing them all up to an EPC rating of C or above.
Carl Vaughan, business customer delivery manager at P H Jones, Centrica’s specialist social housing division, said: “This project has huge potential to reduce energy bills for residents, while improving local air quality and making a significant contribution towards our national net zero targets.
“For us, this is a fantastic opportunity to deliver a sustainable heating project on a national scale, with demand only set to grow over the coming months and years. We’re drawing on the specialist renewable energy skills, knowledge and resources across our business to make it happen, and to strengthen our position at the forefront of the UK’s transition towards cleaner, greener heating.”
The project is being funded by Sanctuary, the Renewable Heat Incentive and the Warm Homes Fund. The smart cylinder in each property features full onboard monitoring, to measure the system’s performance and demonstrate that the requirements for funding are being met.
Donna Williams, Director – Sustainability and Climate Change for Sanctuary, commented: “We have a responsibility to ensure our tenants live in warm homes that are cost-effective to heat, reducing fuel poverty and increasing quality of life. Our energy management team continuously monitors energy consumption across our portfolio and identified an opportunity for this project to improve the energy efficiency of some of our homes and identify any areas for future improvements.”
Project planning, delivery and compliance is being overseen by P H Jones. An approved contractor will complete the first 100 installs while training and upskilling British Gas engineers, who will then take over and complete the rest.
Each home is being specified with a suite of products from Mitsubishi including an Ecodan air source heat pump, an Ecodan R32 FTC6 monoblock pre-plumbed standard cylinder and an FTC5 controller, along with a series of individually-sized low water volume radiators from Stelrad, complete with thermostatic valves.
