Development to create UK’s largest water-source heat network

The ‘first of its kind’ technology will initially supply 700 homes, commercial premises, and community buildings, and as Welborne expands developers plans for the network to supply all 15,000 residents in 6,000 new homes with heat, hot water, and cooling.

Clean heat developer and operator, Rendesco, has been commissioned by Buckland Development, the master developer of the site, to deliver the first phase of the network. The network will be owned and operated by Last Mile Heat, the Heat Trust registered low-carbon heat supplier, which is a joint venture between Last Mile and Rendesco.

Rendesco said the new system will increase the garden village’s sustainability credentials by ensuring the project has a reliable and sustainable supply of clean heat and hot water, in addition to cooling technology.

The network draws water from Portsmouth Water’s underground Hoads Hill Reservoir, which the providers said makes it more efficient than air source heat pumps due to the more stable and higher average temperature of the reservoir.