Earlier this month, Amberside’s commercial advisory team, together with our new graduate consultants and Serbjeet Kohli, Steer’s Director and sustainability lead, visited the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in East London, to learn about the Community Energy Network implemented by Equans, which gave us a great opportunity to look behind the scenes of this trophy project for UK’s energy transition.
During our trip to the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, we had a chance to admire breathtaking views of the whole district from the ArcelorMittal Orbit, where our Head of Commercial Advisory, Mark Easter, pointed out all the key components of the network, as well as the boundaries of their concession area. We also took a look at the Stratford City Energy Centre, but the culminating point of the visit was the tour of the visitor centre and a walk through the Kings Yard Energy Centre.
At the site, Amy and Fanny, our guides from Equans, explained in detail the mechanics of the CHP plant and demonstrated on an interactive map how tri-generation of heating, cooling and electricity works and flows around the local area. We were even allowed a quick sneak peek into the control room, that monitors the network 24/7.
The energy scheme comprises of two interconnected energy centres and a network of over 20km of pipe work, serving thousands of domestic residents and multiple commercial buildings, including the London Stadium and Westfield Shopping Centre with a pipeline of new connections currently under development. The heat network plays a fundamental role in continuing the London 2012 legacy strategy and contributing to the city’s decarbonisation efforts.
Earlier this year, the ELE’s scheme had been awarded £1.76 million grant from the Green Heat Network Fund (GHNF), to support the installation of a low carbon heat pump at the Stratford City Energy Centre (which has now been installed) and the expansion of the network. Amberside Advisors are part of the Triple Point Heat Networks Investment Management consortium, which evaluates applications for the GHNF funding, so it was great for the team to see the outcome of the financial support in real life.
It was a very interesting day, where we all learned a lot and we are looking forward to seeing more successful energy transition projects in the future.