[DebF_EONNext]

Hey Community 👋

You may have already heard the news but I really wanted to share this exciting development with you all!

Silvertown, East London is set to become the site of the UK’s first installation of E.ON's innovative ectogrid™ system, a cutting-edge low-carbon energy network.

In collaboration with Australian real estate developer Lendlease, they aim to serve over 6,000 homes, leisure, cultural and community facilities and work-spaces in the 760,000 m² Silvertown development site.

What is ectogrid™?

Ectogrid™ is an energy sharing network that's based on heat pump technology, the system is expected to save around 4,000 tonnes of CO2 a year - spectacularly this is 88% lower than traditional gas boilers!!

How does ectogrid™ work?

As I mentioned above it's based on heat pump technology - using existing energy sources like air, water or ground before creating more energy!

Buildings within the site will share excess heat and or cooling to other buildings that need it - by balancing and storing the energy efficiently this reduces overall energy consumption, costs and environmental impact!

If you've found this interesting you can give this a thumbs up, I would also love hear your thought's on this do you think it will be useful, is this the way forward for the future? 😎

You can also find out more about this on E.ON Energy's website: E.ON Energy - Silvertown confirmed as the UK's first ectogrid™ site

[meldrewreborn]

Well I’ve given it a thumbs up, but it’s entirely conditional. Time will tell if the reality lives up to the hype Or as they used to say the proof of the pudding is in the eating.

perhaps the next project should be capturing heat from the London Underground network!

[DebF_EONNext]

@meldrewreborn That would be a fantastic idea, I wonder how much heat it actually generates 🤔

[Andy65]

It sounds like a good idea but it would be interesting to see the actual details, how does it reduce costs for example? I'd question the financial aspect of it even allowing for the fact that a new development would reduce costs rather than converting existing buildings.

Energy recovery or re-using waste energy has been around for decades, Stoke Plant in Coventry used High Pressure Hot Water for heating well over 40 years ago. It was supplied from the Whitley Waste Incinerator.

I'm all for reducing CO2 but being realistic about it I think we're going about it the wrong way.

[DebF_EONNext]

Originally Posted by Andy65

I'm all for reducing CO2 but being realistic about it I think we're going about it the wrong way.

@Andy65 Where do you think the biggest reduction on CO2 could come from and what changes would you make or like to see happen?

[retrotecchie]

@DebF_EONNext

Chill out, folks. The UK's CO2 emissions have been reduced by 6% in just one week. So heat pumps can now be consigned to the back burner. By this time next year, UK CO2 emissions should drop by another 11% making us, by far, the country in the G7 with the biggest cut in emissions. As our CO2 only accounts for around 2% (or less) of global emissions, then heat pumps are a total waste of time and effort in trying to make any more savings.

[Mailman]

Originally Posted by retrotecchie

@DebF_EONNext

Chill out, folks. The UK's CO2 emissions have been reduced by 6% in just one week. So heat pumps can now be consigned to the back burner. By this time next year, UK CO2 emissions should drop by another 11% making us, by far, the country in the G7 with the biggest cut in emissions. As our CO2 only accounts for around 2% (or less) of global emissions, then heat pumps are a total waste of time and effort in trying to make any more savings.

Make that less than 1% of global emissions now and continuing to decline.

[Andy65]

Originally Posted by DebF_EONNext

@Andy65 Where do you think the biggest reduction on CO2 could come from and what changes would you make or like to see happen?

Well @DebF_EONNext I have no idea what produces the most CO2 and I don't really have the inclination to find out, but it seems common sense to me that you have to tackle the root cause. Everything revolves around the population doesn't it? The higher it goes then the more resources/infrastructure/food/transport etc are needed.

[Andy65]

@retrotecchie @Mailman

Ah that may well be all well and good but companies never want to miss out on any PR opportunity, which the masses tend to fully accept on face value.

A good example are the Supermarkets, "we're reducing plastics by 10% blah blah blah", but they're the ones who introduced all of the plastic in the first place. Yet no-one questions it and the media seem to applaud whatever they say.
You'd go to your local Greengrocer and your spuds might be wrapped in an old newspaper or your grapes put in a brown paper bag. A similar story at the Butchers, bacon wrapped in paper with none of that guff injected into it that now comes out when you fry/grill it.

[meldrewreborn]

The nations with the highest living standards produce the most CO2 per head of population which puts us the dock I’m afraid. Of course the USA is the main culprit but they’re not at the forefront of the environmental campaign. Like the UK though they’ve massively reduced emissions by substituting natural gas for coal in their electricity generation, but further reductions are harder to come by.
On a personal level I can readily accept that keeping warm is my major contribution to CO2 in the atmosphere, followed by my vehicle use.
in both respects I cannot contemplate making further reductions in my energy demand, as I done a lot in the past.
there comes a point where economics points in one direction, and the environment points in another quite different one. This is where government comes in, they set the rules that we abide by, and can influence our thinking. I think the public will adopt things like heat pumps and electric vehicles when it becomes financially attractive to do so, and government can make that more likely - they have more leverage than does an individual.