Thursday, 17 January 2013
Signing off
The CLUES project has now ended. However you can still visit the project website at www.ucl.ac.uk/silve/clues which will continue to be updated. In particular you can find details there of academic publications from the project as they get published, download the project tool - which is a guide for strategic policy makers considering the pursuit of decentralised energy pathways, and use the interactive CLUE Energy Triangle tool - which is a self-evaluation exercise. Do browse around the site for information about the project and its outputs.
Thanks for you interest,
Yvonne Rydin
Thanks for you interest,
Yvonne Rydin
Monday, 26 March 2012
Energy-materials linkage
This looks like an interesting new book, published out of the engineering faculty at Cambridge University: Sustainable Materials - With Both Eyes Open. It is accompanied by a website at www. withbotheyesopen.com. The central premise is the need to rethink how we use materials in order to cut our carbon emissions. As well as switching to renewable energies, the authors set out three key principles concerning how we design the use of materials:
1) make lighter products with less materials in them
2) keep products for longer making more use of the embodied carbon within them
3) use them more intensively.
In addition they suggest the reduction of wastage in production processes and better reuse of components in old products.
So taking the case of steel-frame commercial buildings, they propose lighter-weight designs with less scrap during production, greater reuse of steel, buildings planned for a longer life and more people per sq.m. within the buildings.
In bits, we know all these things but it is interesting to see it all put together.
Yvonne Rydin
Wednesday, 21 March 2012
London’s Energy Future
The London’s Energy Future Symposium took place on 19 March at UCL. The event was the first in a series organised by London 2062. This is a project under the UCL Grand Challenge Grants Scheme which looks at the long term future of London across a number of issues by bringing together a range of leading academics and practitioners. Speakers included Paul Ekins and Bob Lowe of the UCL Energy Institute, Peter North of GLA and Bob Fiddik from the London Borough of Croydon. Among the many issues discussed that day few are listed below:
· Current policy challenges including the price of energy (i.e. low-carbon energy is currently more expensive than high-carbon energy); energy efficiency in buildings (measuring building performance, building industry skills, building valuation and motivating/ regulating
household reduction/ consumption); and incentivising investment (via the electricity market reform, Green Deal loans and Green Investment Bank).
· GLA’s policy is that London is moving towards district heating! GLA has already produced a series of ‘heat maps (see http://www.londonheatmap.co.uk/) and is drawing up at the moment an ‘Energy Master Plan’.
· ‘Lessons’ from other countries show us that the UK needs to move towards more ‘collective thinking’ which is, however, deeply counter cultural in this country; and de-risking legislation for the energy market
· Who should design energy systems and energy policy? Economists and engineers, alongside policy makers, not only policy makers as done over the last 10 years!
· For the scale of envisaged change to happen we need to built a ‘community of practice’, continuous and coherent policy support, and include economics and engineer ‘literates’ in policy processes.
This was an interesting discussion, loaded with economic and technical stuff! However, the role that institutions and people might play in this transition has been little touched upon!
Catalina Turcu, UCL
21 March 2012
· Current policy challenges including the price of energy (i.e. low-carbon energy is currently more expensive than high-carbon energy); energy efficiency in buildings (measuring building performance, building industry skills, building valuation and motivating/ regulating
household reduction/ consumption); and incentivising investment (via the electricity market reform, Green Deal loans and Green Investment Bank).
· GLA’s policy is that London is moving towards district heating! GLA has already produced a series of ‘heat maps (see http://www.londonheatmap.co.uk/) and is drawing up at the moment an ‘Energy Master Plan’.
· ‘Lessons’ from other countries show us that the UK needs to move towards more ‘collective thinking’ which is, however, deeply counter cultural in this country; and de-risking legislation for the energy market
· Who should design energy systems and energy policy? Economists and engineers, alongside policy makers, not only policy makers as done over the last 10 years!
· For the scale of envisaged change to happen we need to built a ‘community of practice’, continuous and coherent policy support, and include economics and engineer ‘literates’ in policy processes.
This was an interesting discussion, loaded with economic and technical stuff! However, the role that institutions and people might play in this transition has been little touched upon!
Catalina Turcu, UCL
21 March 2012
A golden age for gas - but not in Europe!
Just came across this interesting post on the EU Energy Policy Blog...
'Forget the gloom about fossil fuels. True, oil is scarce; granted, coal is dirty – but natural gas is clean and plentiful. In terms of local air pollution, gas burns very cleanly indeed. In terms of greenhouse gases it emits half what coal does, per KWh generated. Unlike oil, or even coal, the world’s gas reserves are expanding dramatically. The coming decades could be a golden age for natural gas, as the International Energy Agency explored in a recent report by this title. However, it is doubtful that Europe will share in this new gas era.'
If you want to read more go to http://www.energypolicyblog.com/2012/03/21/a-golden-age-for-gas-but-not-in-europe/.
Catalina Turcu, UCL
21 March 2011
Friday, 16 March 2012
CLUES project presented in Sweden
The CLUES project was presented this week at the Swedish Energy Outlook Congress held at the Swedish Exhibition Centre in Gothenburg. This is the major annual event for the energy sector in Sweden to come together and discuss policy, see new technology and generally just network. Extending over three days, the Congress saw a major exhibition from the many companies, universities and consultancies working on energy in Sweden. The CLUES project had been invited by Tengbom to present an analysis of centralisation/decentralisation in a very different context to Sweden. The influence of local authorities and the heavy use of all kinds of renewables sets a very different framework for pursuing a more sustainable energy path. However it was interesting to see some familiar concerns from the UK being aired: the limitations of regulations, the need to engage with local stakeholders and the problem of low housebuilding rates putting the emphasis on retrofitting.
Friday, 9 March 2012
Community Energy event
UEA and Sussex Universities hosted a lively debate on community energy at UEA London yesterday. Speakers included Chris Church of the Low Carbon Communities Network, Rebecca Willis who has recently co-authored a guide to 'Cooperative Renewable Energy in the UK', Rufus Ford of Scottish and Southern Energy, Patrick Allcorn from DECC and Damian Tow, founder member and Director of Brighton Energy Co-operative. Among the many issues raised were:
- the importance of a sound business case for community energy
- the need to invest in skills and capacity building as well as technology
- the potential dangers in the grant system of a) over-reliance on subsidies and b) inherent bias as past winners of grants succeed time and again, and
- the need to recognise equity issues in making any grants.
The aim has to be to create a self-sustaining community energy sector, which is currently proving difficult. The complexity of the policy landscape does not help and some suggested that the community sector was treated rather patronisingly, rather than recognising the way that - collectively - it is a major player in the energy field. In the managed market for energy, a separate Community Feed in Tariff would be a good way forward, establishing the basis for community enterprises to scale up and function as businesses. Normalisation of community energy should be the ambition which many argued was within reach.
- the importance of a sound business case for community energy
- the need to invest in skills and capacity building as well as technology
- the potential dangers in the grant system of a) over-reliance on subsidies and b) inherent bias as past winners of grants succeed time and again, and
- the need to recognise equity issues in making any grants.
The aim has to be to create a self-sustaining community energy sector, which is currently proving difficult. The complexity of the policy landscape does not help and some suggested that the community sector was treated rather patronisingly, rather than recognising the way that - collectively - it is a major player in the energy field. In the managed market for energy, a separate Community Feed in Tariff would be a good way forward, establishing the basis for community enterprises to scale up and function as businesses. Normalisation of community energy should be the ambition which many argued was within reach.
Wednesday, 1 February 2012
MINDSPACE: A challenging proposal to influence (low carbon) behaviour through policy?
Paul Dolan, Professor of Behavioural Science at the LSE, thinks that lessons from the behavioural
sciences can be used to understand and change individual behaviour, which in turn can help meet current policy challenges, such as how to reduce crime, tackle obesity and ensure environmental sustainability. With that in mind, he sets out nine of the most robust (non-coercive) influences on human behaviour, captured in a simple mnemonic – MINDSPACE – which can be used as a quick checklist when making policy. These are:
sciences can be used to understand and change individual behaviour, which in turn can help meet current policy challenges, such as how to reduce crime, tackle obesity and ensure environmental sustainability. With that in mind, he sets out nine of the most robust (non-coercive) influences on human behaviour, captured in a simple mnemonic – MINDSPACE – which can be used as a quick checklist when making policy. These are:
- Messenger - we are heavily influenced by who communicates information
- Incentives - our responses to incentives are shaped by predictable mental shortcuts such as strongly avoiding losses
- Norms - we are strongly influenced by what others do
- Defaults - we „go with the flow‟ of pre-set options
- Salience - our attention is drawn to what is novel and seems relevant to us
- Priming - our acts are often influenced by sub-conscious cues
- Affect - our emotional associations can powerfully shape our actions
- Commitments - we seek to be consistent with our public promises, and reciprocate acts
- Ego - we act in ways that make us feel better about ourselves
He is working at the moment on one energy related project: “The use of online social norms in
influencing energy consumption: testing whether online information can change behaviour”. The project is an experiment on social tenants in Camden which sends out individual letters that ‘expose’ where the household’s energy consumption lies in comparison to its neighbours. The research found that the households receiving personalised letters have significantly reduced their
energy consumption (by 2%) when compared to the control group (exposed to traditional
campaigning for energy consumption reduction).
However, the research also finds that the ‘letter effect’ seems to wear off in time. Thus, one-off or
short-term changes in behaviour do not seem to trigger longer term changes in lifestyles. …and this is certainly supported by some of the evidence emerging from the CLUES case studies.
Monday, 23 January 2012
Call for Papers
CLUES Conference: Energy in the Locality.
8th May 2012, University College London, London
To register your interest please go to http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/event/2812188331.
Many current research projects on energy systems are using urban and rural case studies to explore a variety of research questions. They employ a wide range of techniques and resulting findings provide a rich platform for interaction between academics, on the one hand, and policy makers and practitioners, on the other hand.
The CLUES Conference: Energy in the Locality is organised as part of the CLUES Project (http://www.ucl.ac.uk/clues/) and aims to provide an opportunity to hear results from local case studies on different aspects of energy systems, and to reflect on the theoretical and methodological implications of using case studies to understand such systems.
A key-note address will be provided by Professor Patrick Devine-Wright of Exeter University. Thereafter the conference will be structured into three streams:
Ø The Theory and Methodology of Case Study Research Session will explore the theoretical and methodological foundations of local case study research in relation to energy studies.
Ø The Results from Urban and Rural Energy Case Studies Session will overview research findings from projects based on urban and/or rural energy case studies.
Ø The Case Study Circus Session will focus on short presentations of ‘one-offs’ innovative local energy case studies.
In addition, there will be a Poster Session where delegates can view summaries of research projects during refreshment periods.
Abstract submissions will take the form of:
Ø an abstract of up to 250 words for papers for ‘Theory and Methodology’ or ‘Results’ sessions, and/or
Ø a brief outline of up to 50 words for the ‘Case Study Circus’ or the’ Poster Session’.
Abstracts should be submitted by 24 February 2012 to clues@ucl.ac.uk. Successful presenters will be notified by 16 March 2012. Conference participation is free but a limited number of places is available and priority will be given to those giving presentations.
Please feel free to disseminate to all those who might be interested.
To register your interest please go to http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/event/2812188331.
Contact details:
Dr. Catalina Turcu
Bartlett School of Planning UCL
22 Gordon Street London WC1H 0QB
Wednesday, 11 January 2012
CLUES Survey of Urban Energy Projects
As part of our work to bring together the various tracks of activity in CLUES, we are inviting people who are involved with urban energy to take part in a survey that aims to enhance understanding of the issues and challenges that they face.
Who should take part?
If you have been involved with projects or policy to develop energy generation, increase energy efficiency in urban areas in the UK, or other activities related to urban energy generation and consumption, then your input will be invaluable. We are particularly interested in hearing from planners, policy makers, and urban designers as well as individuals working in the third sector.
How does it work?
The survey will be carried out in two stages via a web interface between January and April 2012, with the second stage being based on the results of the first (referred to as Delphi technique). Each stage will require a maximum of half an hour and can be completed at a time convenient to the participant.
What is the research?
The survey is part of the CLUES project (Challenging Lock-in Through Urban Energy Systems), which is combining national and international research to better understand how urban energy systems can contribute to delivering carbon reductions, and disseminating the findings in a way that will assist decision-making.
How can you take part?
I hope that you will consider taking part. To register, simply enter your name and email address into this Internet form (www.tinyurl.com/urbanenergyclues) by 27th January. If you have any questions about the research, please contact graeme.sherriff@manchester.ac.uk.
Please mention this to colleagues who may be interested in taking part.
Friday, 16 December 2011
Warm Swedish buildings
This week I went to Stockholm to learn about Kungsbrohusen Office Building – and to experience for myself if this building is really as comfortable and user-friendly as it sounds. For two nights I stayed in the Kungsbron hotel which is a small hotel inside this building – and it seems like the owners of the hotel are very proud of being located in this energy efficient building as there is a lot of information in every room about how sustainable the building is.
The Kungbronhusen Office Building is a 13-storey property in the centre of Stockholm, near the Stockholm Central Station.
Both the Central Station and the Office Building are owned by Jernhusen company.
Jerhunsen wanted to prove that it is possible to built a sustainable office building using available of the market materials and mature technologies rather than fancy but risky innovations.
The objective of the project is to create a development where the environment and energy-efficiency are central considerations.
Building’s branding is about being ‘green’: the office space is let to the companies that want to boost their image as environmentally-friendly. All the tenants in the building are supported the expert who helps to adapt the organizations and minimize their impact on the environment. The building is advertised as being ‘eco-smart’, which includes three characteristics:
- Eco-smart building: The building with energy efficient façade and environmentally adapted materials, combined with other innovative solutions that lead to three environmental certifications.
- Eco-everyday: Services and technical solutions that enable users to operate in an eco-friendly way.
- Eco-location; The building’s proximity to public transport makes travelling and transports easier and contributes to lower CO2 emissions.
The users of the building are encouraged to minimize the environmental impact of their daily activities. Building users are offered coordinated framework agreements for cleaning services, servicing of office machinery and waste management. The building is also provided with secure bicycle storage area with a compressor pump and tools available for bicycle repairs, as well as dressing rooms and showers.
Another intersting part of the building is a ‘green button’: This button is pressed at the end of the working day to ensure that all standby functions such as computers, screens and other lighting are switched off.
An important part of the project is the building’s energy-efficient frontage, which controls the amount of sunlight allowed into the internal space and creates a balance so that the interior is neither too hot nor too cold.
One of the interesting features of the building is that every hour the Swedish meteorological centre automatically sends a detailed weather forecast direct to Kungsbrohuset via the GSM network. This means that the heat supply to Kungsbrohuset will be increased several hours before a drop in temperature occurs. By doing this, building’s heat regulating system is put to optimal use.
The largest part of the heating is provided by GSHP, with some part of the heating provided by body heat! Approximately 200,000 people pass through nearby Stockholm Central Station every day. These people, along with the various restaurants and cafés in the station, produce a large amount of excess heat. Instead of letting this heat goes to waste, it now being used for heating. Kungsbrohuset building. The technology is not new and is similar to the principles of Canadian wells. The heat generated by human activity is recovered by the ventilation system and then sent away from the station in its water tanks. Heated by this hot air, the water is sent to the second building through a heat exchanger, which allows the building to save up to 20% of its energy consumption. To complete the loop, the cooled water is returned to the station to optimize its temperature control.
Jerhusen is planning to build some more office buldings around the train station in the nearset future and they also have similar projects in other cities in Sweden.
Does this mean that this kind of projects are easy to replicate and can be widely used in the UK? We will talk about it in our workshop in early February – and if you are intersted, contac tme on k.chmutina@lboro.ac.uk .
The Kungbronhusen Office Building is a 13-storey property in the centre of Stockholm, near the Stockholm Central Station.
Both the Central Station and the Office Building are owned by Jernhusen company.
Jerhunsen wanted to prove that it is possible to built a sustainable office building using available of the market materials and mature technologies rather than fancy but risky innovations.
The objective of the project is to create a development where the environment and energy-efficiency are central considerations.
Building’s branding is about being ‘green’: the office space is let to the companies that want to boost their image as environmentally-friendly. All the tenants in the building are supported the expert who helps to adapt the organizations and minimize their impact on the environment. The building is advertised as being ‘eco-smart’, which includes three characteristics:
- Eco-smart building: The building with energy efficient façade and environmentally adapted materials, combined with other innovative solutions that lead to three environmental certifications.
- Eco-everyday: Services and technical solutions that enable users to operate in an eco-friendly way.
- Eco-location; The building’s proximity to public transport makes travelling and transports easier and contributes to lower CO2 emissions.
The users of the building are encouraged to minimize the environmental impact of their daily activities. Building users are offered coordinated framework agreements for cleaning services, servicing of office machinery and waste management. The building is also provided with secure bicycle storage area with a compressor pump and tools available for bicycle repairs, as well as dressing rooms and showers.
Another intersting part of the building is a ‘green button’: This button is pressed at the end of the working day to ensure that all standby functions such as computers, screens and other lighting are switched off.
An important part of the project is the building’s energy-efficient frontage, which controls the amount of sunlight allowed into the internal space and creates a balance so that the interior is neither too hot nor too cold.
One of the interesting features of the building is that every hour the Swedish meteorological centre automatically sends a detailed weather forecast direct to Kungsbrohuset via the GSM network. This means that the heat supply to Kungsbrohuset will be increased several hours before a drop in temperature occurs. By doing this, building’s heat regulating system is put to optimal use.
The largest part of the heating is provided by GSHP, with some part of the heating provided by body heat! Approximately 200,000 people pass through nearby Stockholm Central Station every day. These people, along with the various restaurants and cafés in the station, produce a large amount of excess heat. Instead of letting this heat goes to waste, it now being used for heating. Kungsbrohuset building. The technology is not new and is similar to the principles of Canadian wells. The heat generated by human activity is recovered by the ventilation system and then sent away from the station in its water tanks. Heated by this hot air, the water is sent to the second building through a heat exchanger, which allows the building to save up to 20% of its energy consumption. To complete the loop, the cooled water is returned to the station to optimize its temperature control.
Jerhusen is planning to build some more office buldings around the train station in the nearset future and they also have similar projects in other cities in Sweden.
Does this mean that this kind of projects are easy to replicate and can be widely used in the UK? We will talk about it in our workshop in early February – and if you are intersted, contac tme on k.chmutina@lboro.ac.uk .
Monday, 12 December 2011
Carbon dioxide emissions show record jump
Professor Chris Rapley (UCL Earth Sciences) comments on new figures detailing the rapid increase in carbon emissions.
Wednesday, 7 December 2011
£30 million announced for community green schemes and public sector energy efficiency
Energy Secretary Chris Huhne has today announced funding of £10 million for local community energy projects, and a £20 million boost to the existing public sector energy efficiency loan scheme. Chris Huhne said:
"This is great news for the public sector. Not only do we need to encourage energy efficiency in our schools, hospitals and universities, we also need to get green energy generation and energy efficiency into our communities. That's why we are also making £10million available for communities to help spur an energy revolution at a local level."
The new £10 million Local Energy Assessment Fund, managed by a number of community networks and administered by the Energy Saving Trust, will be run as a competition, with the chance for around 200 community organisations to get to grips with energy efficiency and renewable energy generation. Organisations including parish councils, voluntary associations, development trusts and faith groups are all eligible to apply.
Visit the DECC Website for the full press release
Monday, 5 December 2011
UCL Environment Institute Debate on Canadian Oil Sands
The Canadian Oil Sands – an Environment Institute Debate
When: 6pm – 7.30pm Monday 12th December 2011 with wine reception afterwards
Where: UCL Archaeology Institute, Lecture Theatre G06 (in Gordon Square)
The development of the Canadian oil sands in northern Alberta is a highly controversial topic that has raised important issues about energy security, decarbonisation, environmental degradation and international trade in energy. This Environment Institute Debate will examine these and other issues. It offers an opportunity to hear the Chair of the Royal Society of Canada present the report of its expert panel on the environmental and health impacts of Canada’s oil sands industry, and to hear reactions from a UCL expert panel. There will be ample time for questions and comments from the floor.
Chair:
Professor Yvonne Rydin, Director of the UCL Environment Institute
Panel:
Professor Steven Hrudey, FRSC and Professor Emeritus, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Alberta
Professor Paul Ekins, Professor in Energy and Environment Policy, UCL Energy Institute
Professor Catherine Redgwell, Professor of International Law, Faculty of Laws, UCL
Professor Peter Sammonds, Professor of Geophysics, Director of UCL Institute for Risk and Disaster Reduction
Friday, 2 December 2011
2012 CLUES Conference - Initial Announcement
Energy in the Locality: a day‐conference to explore local energy case studies in urban and rural locations
8 May 2012, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1
The Energy in the Locality Conference will be held at University College London on 8 May 2012. A detailed Conference Call will be issued in January 2012.
Many current research projects on energy systems are using urban and rural case studies to explore a variety of research questions. The conference will provide an opportunity to hear results from local case studies on different aspects of energy systems, and to reflect on the theoretical and methodological implications of using case studies to understand such systems.
A key-note address will be provided by Professor Patrick Devine-Wright of Exeter University. Thereafter the conference will be structured into three streams:
Ø The Theory and Methodology of Case Study Research: the theoretical and methodological foundations of local case study research in relation to energy studies;
Ø Results from Urban and Rural Energy Case Studies: overviews of research findings from projects based on urban and/or rural energy case studies; and
Ø A Case Study Circus: short presentations focusing on ‘one-offs’ innovative local energy case studies.
In addition, there will be a Poster Session where delegates can view summaries of research projects during refreshment periods.
Abstract submissions will take the form of:
Ø an abstract of up to 250 words for papers for ‘Theory and Methodology’ or ‘Results’ sessions, and/or
Ø a brief outline of up to 50 words for the ‘Case Study Circus’ or the’ Poster Session’.
Contact details:
Thursday, 1 December 2011
New energy tools out there
Went to a very interesting meeting organized by Government Foresight this morning looking at joining up data and tools available on energy, including local energy. On the day that the Government's new Carbon Plan is launched (http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/tackling/carbon_plan/carbon_plan.aspx) it seems apposite to be noting some interesting new resources out there or soon to be out there:
1) CSE will be launching their zoomable national heat map early in 2012 which uses Google maps as a very accessible base: http://www.cse.org.uk/news/view/1458
2) CSE also have a fabulous resource for community planning available at http://www.planlocal.org.uk/
3) DECC have their Community Energy Online resource at http://ceo.decc.gov.uk/
4) DECC are also relaunching their 2050 Pathways, which now include cost data and visualisations at home, city and country level that react to the parameters chosen when playing around with the pathways calculator: http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/tackling/2050/2050.aspx
5) EST is hosting the Housing Energy Efficiency Database at http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/Professional-resources/Existing-Housing/Homes-Energy-Efficiency-Database; working is ongoing on one that incorporates non-domestic data
6) Finally, CSE has DEC data available to download at www.cse.org.uk/data
Happy browsing!
Yvonne Rydin
1) CSE will be launching their zoomable national heat map early in 2012 which uses Google maps as a very accessible base: http://www.cse.org.uk/news/view/1458
2) CSE also have a fabulous resource for community planning available at http://www.planlocal.org.uk/
3) DECC have their Community Energy Online resource at http://ceo.decc.gov.uk/
4) DECC are also relaunching their 2050 Pathways, which now include cost data and visualisations at home, city and country level that react to the parameters chosen when playing around with the pathways calculator: http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/tackling/2050/2050.aspx
5) EST is hosting the Housing Energy Efficiency Database at http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/Professional-resources/Existing-Housing/Homes-Energy-Efficiency-Database; working is ongoing on one that incorporates non-domestic data
6) Finally, CSE has DEC data available to download at www.cse.org.uk/data
Happy browsing!
Yvonne Rydin
Tuesday, 29 November 2011
Berlin's approach to Refurbishment: Energy saving partnership
Couple of weeks ago I went to Berlin to learn more Berlin Energy Saving Partnership.
I met up with Ms Susanne Berger from Berlin Energy Agency, which is responsible for the implementation of the partnership and also with Mr Klaus Ritcher from one of the ESCOs carrying out the implementation of energy efficiency measures.
Berlin energy saving partnership was first introduced by the State of Berlin in 1995. The reason for developing BESP was to reach Germany’s ambitious climate protection objectives, as well as to reduce energy costs. Its basic principle is simple: a private specialized energy service company (the contractor) brings its know-how and financials means into the project. The responsibility of the contractor is to ensure that by making adequate investments, the energy savings can be guaranteed. Both partners then share cost reductions and profits are also shared between the client and the contractor – while energy consumption is reduced.
Under the current BESP, among refurbished buildings there are school, kindergartens, office buildings, swimming pools, theatre, universities and other municipal buildings. All together around 1,400 buildings have being refurbished with the total CO2 reduction of approximately 69,600 t/a. One of the first refurbished buildings was Berlin City Hall.
The refurbishments have been performed by 17 contractors, and the guaranteed savings were achieved in all contracts. On average the guaranteed savings are around 26% of baseline energy consumption, with the highest energy savings resulted in 35% savings!
Interesting, replacement of the windows and insulation are not a part of the programme - implemented energy efficiency measures include refurbishment of heating and illumination, energy management and what is very important user motivation. I found the last measure – user motivation – particularly interesting: it is a requirement for the contractor to teach the building users about energy savings, and by the end user they do not mean buildings manager. If the building under refurbishment is a kindergarten, then the contractor talks to children as well!
This model has proved to be a success in Berlin and is now widely replicated in other European countries, such as Slovenia, Estonia, Bulgaria, Romania, as well as in China, Chile and other countries. It also expands in Germany and there are plans for implementing “Berlin Energy Saving Partnership Plus” where more expensive measures such as building insulation and window replacement will be performed.
More about this progamme will be presented as a part of our workshop on 27th of January – and we will also look at its potential to be implemented in the UK.
I met up with Ms Susanne Berger from Berlin Energy Agency, which is responsible for the implementation of the partnership and also with Mr Klaus Ritcher from one of the ESCOs carrying out the implementation of energy efficiency measures.
Berlin energy saving partnership was first introduced by the State of Berlin in 1995. The reason for developing BESP was to reach Germany’s ambitious climate protection objectives, as well as to reduce energy costs. Its basic principle is simple: a private specialized energy service company (the contractor) brings its know-how and financials means into the project. The responsibility of the contractor is to ensure that by making adequate investments, the energy savings can be guaranteed. Both partners then share cost reductions and profits are also shared between the client and the contractor – while energy consumption is reduced.
Under the current BESP, among refurbished buildings there are school, kindergartens, office buildings, swimming pools, theatre, universities and other municipal buildings. All together around 1,400 buildings have being refurbished with the total CO2 reduction of approximately 69,600 t/a. One of the first refurbished buildings was Berlin City Hall.
The refurbishments have been performed by 17 contractors, and the guaranteed savings were achieved in all contracts. On average the guaranteed savings are around 26% of baseline energy consumption, with the highest energy savings resulted in 35% savings!
Interesting, replacement of the windows and insulation are not a part of the programme - implemented energy efficiency measures include refurbishment of heating and illumination, energy management and what is very important user motivation. I found the last measure – user motivation – particularly interesting: it is a requirement for the contractor to teach the building users about energy savings, and by the end user they do not mean buildings manager. If the building under refurbishment is a kindergarten, then the contractor talks to children as well!
This model has proved to be a success in Berlin and is now widely replicated in other European countries, such as Slovenia, Estonia, Bulgaria, Romania, as well as in China, Chile and other countries. It also expands in Germany and there are plans for implementing “Berlin Energy Saving Partnership Plus” where more expensive measures such as building insulation and window replacement will be performed.
More about this progamme will be presented as a part of our workshop on 27th of January – and we will also look at its potential to be implemented in the UK.
Thursday, 24 November 2011
CLUES workshop
On November 23rd 2011 we successfully held our first innovative international case studies workshop on seawater heating systems - more details on this to follow. We would like to thank all those attended for heir valuable contribution and very interesting and informative presentations and discussions.
In the next couple of months we are organizing other workshops.
Our second workshop “New ways of financing renewable energy: an example of Morris Model, New Jersey, USA” is on 8th December 2011, 13.00-18.00, at the UCL as well. The aim of the workshop is to introduce a new approach to financing PV and to discuss its potential to be implemented in the UK, as well as to share the experiences of those who already worked with this innovative approach. Attendees expected at the workshop include a representative of the Morris County, USA; representatives of the UK government, academics and other interested parties.
We are also planning a workshop on “Performance Contracting and Retrofit: an example of Berlin’s success” on 27th of January (location tbc). The aim of the workshop ids to introduce a new way of financing retrofit of commercial buildings and to share the experience of Berlin Energy Saving Partnership, as well as to discuss its potential to be implemented in the UK. Attendees expected at the workshop include representatives of the Berlin Energy Agency, representatives of the UK government and those interested in building retrofit.
All the workshops are free, but places are limited, so if you are interested please contact Dr Ksenia Chmutina on k.chmutina@lboro.ac.uk.
In the next couple of months we are organizing other workshops.
Our second workshop “New ways of financing renewable energy: an example of Morris Model, New Jersey, USA” is on 8th December 2011, 13.00-18.00, at the UCL as well. The aim of the workshop is to introduce a new approach to financing PV and to discuss its potential to be implemented in the UK, as well as to share the experiences of those who already worked with this innovative approach. Attendees expected at the workshop include a representative of the Morris County, USA; representatives of the UK government, academics and other interested parties.
We are also planning a workshop on “Performance Contracting and Retrofit: an example of Berlin’s success” on 27th of January (location tbc). The aim of the workshop ids to introduce a new way of financing retrofit of commercial buildings and to share the experience of Berlin Energy Saving Partnership, as well as to discuss its potential to be implemented in the UK. Attendees expected at the workshop include representatives of the Berlin Energy Agency, representatives of the UK government and those interested in building retrofit.
All the workshops are free, but places are limited, so if you are interested please contact Dr Ksenia Chmutina on k.chmutina@lboro.ac.uk.
Monday, 14 November 2011
The experience of KfW - a German Bank - in the Reduction of Energy Use in and CO2 emissions from Buildings
UCL and LSE have recently launched a joint report regarding the lessons that the UK could learn from the experience of KfW, a part publicly owned German Bank, in the reduction of energy use in and CO2 emisions from the built environment. For more information please go to
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/news-articles/1111/111109-Lessons-from-German-bank-cut-energy-bills-UK-homeowners?dm_i=UAA,LHOP,3YPFC4,1QR43,1 and to this complimentary presentation http://sticerd.lse.ac.uk/textonly/LSEhousing/Events/Cutting%20Carbon%20Costs/Paul_Ekins.pdf.
Catalina Turcu, UCL
14 Nov 2011
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/news-articles/1111/111109-Lessons-from-German-bank-cut-energy-bills-UK-homeowners?dm_i=UAA,LHOP,3YPFC4,1QR43,1 and to this complimentary presentation http://sticerd.lse.ac.uk/textonly/LSEhousing/Events/Cutting%20Carbon%20Costs/Paul_Ekins.pdf.
Catalina Turcu, UCL
14 Nov 2011
Monday, 17 October 2011
How to heat your house using seawater
I’ve just got back from the Hague - home of the seawater district heating project. I spent three sunny days there talking to people involved in this project - engineers, managers, civil servants, and even had a very exciting technical visit and saw for myself how the seawater heating plant works.
The sea water heating plant is part of the city’s plan to use more sustainable energy and is one of the steps being taken towards making the Hague ‘climate by 2050. Today seawater heating system provides 750 houses in the area of Duindorp with heating and hot water; and it is planned to connect further 300 houses to this system. As Mr Henk Heijkers from the City of the Hague Sustainability Department put it, “my dream is that the whole Scheveningen Harbour area gets fantastic new buildings with the new Duindorp all connected on seawater energy”. Duindorp is a new housing estate area along the North Sea Coast built to replace 1100 old energy inefficient houses that used to be small former fishermen family houses built between 1915 and 1931.
The concept of seawater heating system is innovative but simple: it consists of a seawater central supply unit with a heat exchanger and heat pump unit that uses the nearby sea as a temperature source. The technologies involved are not new, but it is the way they were combines that attracts attention: it is an innovation that allows constructing a very efficient system for making seawater or surface water the source of energy for heating homes as well as heating water – and not only during a warmer season.
The idea of a sustainable heating system was proposed by the housing corporation Vestia – it is now an owner of the seawater heating system. However, it took some time to find the most suitable system: for a few months government authorities, housing corporation, engineering consultancy and utility companies were involved in a process of brainstorming and discussion. Eventually, Mr Paul Stoelinga from Deerns came up with the idea of combining a heat exchanger, a central heat pump and small water pumps in the homes. In summer, the heat exchanger feeds heated water to local grid, drawing enough heat from the seawater to cover residents' need. In winter, the job is taken over by the central screw ammonia heat plant. This allows ensuring that throughout the year residents of the Duindorp houses get indoor comfort and tap water at the right temperature.
While in the Hague, I had a tour around the central unit located near the harbour. This small warehouse-looking building contains both the central heat exchanger and heat pump. Smaller individual heat pumps are installed in each home for further heating.
The overall efficiency of the heat generation process with this system is more than 50% better than with conventional high-efficiency boilers, while the cost to the residents is no higher. Moreover, it results in a 50% reduction in CO2 emissions.
Similar system can be installed pretty much anywhere in the world close to the body of water and it would even be cheaper in case of fresh water, because there’s no need to protect the heat pump, heat exchanger and water pumps against salt corrosion. So why not use it in the UK?
The sea water heating plant is part of the city’s plan to use more sustainable energy and is one of the steps being taken towards making the Hague ‘climate by 2050. Today seawater heating system provides 750 houses in the area of Duindorp with heating and hot water; and it is planned to connect further 300 houses to this system. As Mr Henk Heijkers from the City of the Hague Sustainability Department put it, “my dream is that the whole Scheveningen Harbour area gets fantastic new buildings with the new Duindorp all connected on seawater energy”. Duindorp is a new housing estate area along the North Sea Coast built to replace 1100 old energy inefficient houses that used to be small former fishermen family houses built between 1915 and 1931.
The concept of seawater heating system is innovative but simple: it consists of a seawater central supply unit with a heat exchanger and heat pump unit that uses the nearby sea as a temperature source. The technologies involved are not new, but it is the way they were combines that attracts attention: it is an innovation that allows constructing a very efficient system for making seawater or surface water the source of energy for heating homes as well as heating water – and not only during a warmer season.
The idea of a sustainable heating system was proposed by the housing corporation Vestia – it is now an owner of the seawater heating system. However, it took some time to find the most suitable system: for a few months government authorities, housing corporation, engineering consultancy and utility companies were involved in a process of brainstorming and discussion. Eventually, Mr Paul Stoelinga from Deerns came up with the idea of combining a heat exchanger, a central heat pump and small water pumps in the homes. In summer, the heat exchanger feeds heated water to local grid, drawing enough heat from the seawater to cover residents' need. In winter, the job is taken over by the central screw ammonia heat plant. This allows ensuring that throughout the year residents of the Duindorp houses get indoor comfort and tap water at the right temperature.
While in the Hague, I had a tour around the central unit located near the harbour. This small warehouse-looking building contains both the central heat exchanger and heat pump. Smaller individual heat pumps are installed in each home for further heating.
The overall efficiency of the heat generation process with this system is more than 50% better than with conventional high-efficiency boilers, while the cost to the residents is no higher. Moreover, it results in a 50% reduction in CO2 emissions.
Similar system can be installed pretty much anywhere in the world close to the body of water and it would even be cheaper in case of fresh water, because there’s no need to protect the heat pump, heat exchanger and water pumps against salt corrosion. So why not use it in the UK?
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