Shawfair District Energy Network
The Shawfair district energy project is the most significant zero-carbon heat network in the South East of Scotland. Shawfair's central development block will host a network of hot-water pipes and plant providing energy to the educational facilities, business properties and the remaining residential units. The network takes heat generated from the neighbouring 20MW energy from waste facility, which qualifies as a zero carbon energy source.
Bringing the project into a commercially and practically viable position involved years of planning, modelling and persuading. Having explored numerous options of procurement and funding routes, the successful structure is being progressed through an Energy Supply Company (ESCo) of Midlothian Council and Vattenfall, funded through a partnership of The Scottish Government, Shawfair and the ESCo partners. Costs and heat supply rates have been secured at a lower level to the current alternative source of energy supply to the town and are guaranteed at a reliably lower level throughout a 25 year heat agreement term.
The core network is being installed over the course of 2021-2022 and connected on a plot-by-plot basis thereafter.
Further opportunities for low carbon energy through heat extraction and storage from the extensive network of flooded mine-workings throughout Shawfair will follow the initial district heating network commissioning, working closely with The Coal Authority and SEPA.
Midlothian Council and Vattenfall launch new Energy Services Company | Vattenfall Heat UK