About heat networks
A heat network is a system for delivering heating and hot water (and even cooling) to homes and workplaces, more efficiently and more sustainably. The heat (and cooling) is produced using low or even zero carbon sources, for example by harvesting wasted heat from our cities. This helps to reduce our use of fossil fuels and helps to tackle climate change.
Our heat networks have been used for decades to significantly reduce emissions in cities across Europe, such as in Amsterdam and in Uppsala, Sweden, and are increasing in number across the UK.
Here’s how they work
In a heat network, the heat comes from outside of your home instead of being generated within a boiler or by electrical heaters. It’s pumped directly into buildings using a network of insulated pipes, filling radiators and providing hot water for whole neighbourhoods.
This heat can be generated in a dedicated building with equipment specifically designed to produce and store heat (called an energy centre). Or, waste heat can be harvested from nearby buildings, factories, data centres and waste processing plants that would otherwise be released into the atmosphere.
Heat networks are wonderfully flexible. By collecting heat from multiple sources, they greatly reduce the impact of heating on the environment. That heat can then easily be shared across a wide area and diverted to wherever it’s needed.
