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Switching on a new low carbon combined heat and power (CHP) system, supplied by sustainable power company ENER-G (www.energ.co.uk), was among the official duties performed by Hilary Benn, Secretary of State for Environment Food and Rural Affairs when he launched The Food and Environment Research Agency (Fera).
The role of the new agency, which has its main laboratory site at Sand Hutton, York, is helping to tackling the important issues of climate change, food security and environmental sustainability.
Fera’s proactive approach to its own environmental management is reflected in the 230kWe ENER-G CHP unit, which is saving 508 tonnes of CO2 annually. Financial savings amount to some £26,000 per year.
CHP, which is almost twice as efficient as conventional power generation, is integral to the government's new Energy White Paper that aims to cut carbon dioxide emissions by 60% before 2050. The government is also aiming to use CHP-generated electricity for at least 15% of Government Estate consumption by 2010.
Mr Benn said: “As we face the challenge of climate change, we need strong scientific institutions to provide us with good, credible evidence. The creation of Fera is a big step forward in doing this.”
Chris Marsland, Technical Director for ENER-G, commented: “Fera is not only supporting high-grade research crucial to environmental management, but is also tangibly demonstrating the government’s determination to promote wider use of CHP technology.
“CHP is the simultaneous generation of electricity and useful heat and reduces greenhouse emissions drastically by capturing the heat output that is wasted in conventional power generation. It also avoids transmission losses because the energy is generated locally.”
The project includes a 10-year discount energy purchase contract which involves ENER-G installing, operating and financing the CHP system at no cost to Fera, then simply contracting the energy produced back to the customer at a discounted rate.
The scheme delivers a range of benefits including: zero capital outlay or risk; no ongoing maintenance or aftercare costs; guaranteed capped energy costs for the length of the agreement; and fast implementation of the scheme.
The CHP system at Sand Hutton is driven by a diesel engine converted to use natural gas; this engine then drives an alternator that generates the site’s electricity requirements.
The unit contains three heat exchangers in an acoustically insulated enclosure, that capture heat from the water jacket, lube oil and exhaust gases to ensure maximum energy efficiency.
For more information contact:
Zita Pálosi, Marketing Services Manager
ENER-G
ENER-G House, Daniel Adamson Road, Salford, Manchester M50 1DT
T: 0161 745 7450 F: 0161 745 7457 E: marketing@energ.co.uk W: www.energ.co.uk
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