H&V News
Summary
Conservative peer Lord Duncan says the UK must "seize the significant opportunity presented by heat networks" to decarbonise large numbers of buildings
The potential for the UK to decarbonise buildings at scale by expanding heat networks use nationally risks being undermined by existing regulations, an industry discussion hears.
The comments were made during the Association for Decentralised Energy’s (ADE’s) annual President’s Reception event that was held in the House of Lords last week. Leaders from across the heat network industry gathered to discuss how the sector can scale up district heating use to decarbonise heat at scale.
Speakers at the event said that heat networks were globally recognised as one of the more proven routes for decarbonising heat at scale. However, they questioned whether there has been sufficient recognition among decision-makers.
Lord Duncan added his concern that existing regulations were proving to be a barrier to expanding the development of heat networks. He said that there was “truly world-leading” innovations being discussed around district heating. But these must be backed in an environment where "visionary ideas can materialise into reality.”
ADE Interim chief executive Caroline Bragg said there were important lessons to be learnt from other sectors to help transition to a new generation of heat network infrastructure.
She said: “Heat networks are not a new technology – quite the opposite. They are an established and well-proven form of infrastructure that is now entering a new era. Building at scale is the next step for heat networks, and we all need to learn the lessons from other industries to ensure we accelerate up the growth curve.”
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