Issue link: https://fhpublishing.uberflip.com/i/690456
NETWORK / 24 / JUNE 2016 T he UK's fledgling heat networks have a period of opportunity ahead of them as energy and planning policies change to define better and more diverse pathways for this significant energy source. They also face challenges, and unless heat networks can prove they are effective and efficient, they will not become a significant part of the UK's future energy mix. Underperformance and slow returns on investment for heat Pinning down performance UK heat networks are underperforming. Now, for the first time, the Pinpoint data project shows why. networks will not endear them to property owners or investors. This is a concern for heat networks today because the Pinpoint project, funded by the Department of Energy and Climate Change to investigate heat network efficiency, has showed that about 36% efficiency is not unusual. Casey Cole, managing director of heat metering and analytics company Guru Systems, which spearheaded Pinpoint, described this as "fairly abysmal". Fortunately, as the Pinpoint project progressed, it identified a range of causes for this underperformance and many are relatively easy for heat network operators to address. The findings, including data sets of a quality and quantity previously unknown to the UK district heating sector, are now publicly available at pinpoint. gurusystems.com. A summary of underlying problems that limit heat network performance are listed Why netWorks underperform l Clients are unsure what to ask for Developers and housing authorities that have had heat networks imposed on them are unsure what to specify. l Commissioning isn't validated Commissioning certificates are often produced for heat networks, but they are often taken at face value by owners, so… l networks often go into operation even if they are not working well. l designers don't see the results of their designs It's rare for heat network designers to be involved in installation or to see how they work in practice. This means there is no learning from project to project. l heat providers are unaware of performance Heat providers are diverse. Some are Escos that supply heat to residents, but many are housing associations and private developers with limited awareness of how their systems work. Assumed performance will have been used to set tariffs. If performance is not being met, these providers will lose money. l diagnosis of performance problems requires expensive consultants Providers have to call in specialists and maybe invest in further capital equipment to capture data on system performance. l When data is captured, it's rarely shared. This means the heat market is trying to feel its way forward as individual inexperienced players – not a single industry. Plant room is only part of the story ENERGY CENTRE 75 O C 72 O C 5.3m3/h HIU HIU HIU HIU HIU HIU HIU HIU HIU HIU HIU HIU Pinpoint captures the data that's been missing ENERGY CENTRE 75 O C 72 O C 5.3m3/h HIU HIU HIU HIU HIU HIU HIU HIU HIU HIU HIU HIU 74 O C 67 O C 74 O C 73 O C 43 O C 41 O C 56 O C 57 O C 52 O C 68 O C 36 O C 32 O C 72 O C 48 O C 71 O C 42 O C 27 O C 40 O C 46 O C 32 O C 53 O C 51 O C 72 O C 24 O C 47 O C 44 O C 24 O C 26 O C 0.0m3/h 2.8m3/h 0.1m3/h 0.1m3/h 0.5m3/h 1.7m3/h 3.6m3/h 0.0m3/h 0.9m3/h 0.1m3/h 0.0m3/h 0.2m3/h 0.1m3/h 0.4m3/h 0.0m3/h 0.1m3/h heat net work peformance pinpoint captures the data that's been missing plant room is only part of the story