UK government reveals £90m plan to warm homes with data center waste heat, with 750,000 homes getting cheaper heating | Daily Reports Online
- £90 million is being allocated toward using excess heat from UK data centers
- In London, around 650,000 homes will receive cut-price heating via a “mega heat project”
- The project is described as delivering “clean heat” to London
The UK government plans to heat around 750,000 homes as part of a new £90 million project that will include supplying hot water heated by data centers. The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) is funding the building of new heat networks and improving existing infrastructure to pipe hot water from data centers across parts of London, including under the Thames.
The initiative is part of a national project to reduce heating bills, with London, Manchester, Newport and Abergavenny in Wales, Solihull in the Midlands, and Bradford in Yorkshire all benefitting. Similar waste-heat projects have been running in Copenhagen, Amsterdam, Vienna, and Berlin for several decades.
In London alone, 650,000 homes will benefit, although the project has drawn ridicule for the cited use of “electric barges” to transport hot water 25 kilometers along the River Thames, while the subterranean pipe system is installed.
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£5 billion unlocked
Diverting heat from data centers into water is the core of the £90 million in government funding, but the mega heat project in London relies on unlocking £5 billion in investment, which will also generate jobs.
Alongside roles in river transport, the money will support construction and engineering projects. The mega heat project under the Thames is expected to distribute heated water from a data center, where enough excess heat is generated to provide enough for homes across London.
While £41 million of the funding goes to the capital, £9.7 million will be invested in extending the city’s original heat network. Heat networks were common in the industrial north in the mid-20th century, although Bradford’s network is a more recent project, commencing in 2024. The projects in Greater Manchester (Gorton and Levenshulme) will replace legacy heating systems in social housing blocks.
The “electric barges”
While initial reaction to the news of London’s mega heat project has been positive, the use of “electric barges” to transport water along the River Thames has inspired some derision. However, the £41 million heat project is planned to start as soon as possible.
The barges (which will cover 25 kilometers a day) are heated, with the water temperature sustained until it is deposited into insulated riverside tanks mounted. Expected to launch in 2028, the barges will remain in operation until the new hot water distribution system is completed.
“Clean power and clean heat benefits communities across our country,” noted the UK’s Minister for Local Energy and Jobs Martin McCluskey.
“Building the infrastructure to deliver it is reindustrialising the UK and rolling out cutting-edge energy technology so families can benefit from lower bills, good jobs and energy security. And for those already using heat networks, we are upgrading inefficient systems to make sure people get the high-quality, low-cost, reliable heating they deserve.”
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