22 September 2021
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The renewable arm of Star Refrigeration – Star Renewable Energy – is sponsoring a site visit to the Queens Quay water source heat pump in Clydebank for delegates at the Low-Carbon Heat Conference 2021.
With the capacity to deliver up to 5.2MW of heat at 80°C, the water source heat pump for district heating is the largest of its kind in Scotland. It was developed and delivered through a collaborations between West Dunbartonshire Council, Vital Energi and Star Renewable Energy.
The heat pump works by leveraging ambient heat from the Clyde Estuary and using ammonia heat pumps to capture that energy, which makes it an extremely low-carbon method of heat generation. In fact, it is expected to produce less than 5% of the emissions associated with gas-burning alternatives, while its coefficient of performance is in excess of 3.0 (or three units of heat produced for every unit of electricity consumed). Housed on the site of the former John Brown’s shipyard, it will service existing buildings and new builds over the coming years, providing 95% of heat demand and 82% of peak demand.
The environmental credentials of the Queens Quay heat pump make it an excellent location for a site visit for delegates to the Low-Carbon Heat Conference 2021. Organised by Scottish Renewables and scheduled to take place on September 23, interested parties are invited to register online and make their own way to the site, which is near to Clydebank train station and offers good parking access. Once present, visitors will be treated to a guided tour of the energy centre, the abstraction chamber, the two heat pumps at the site and given an overview of the district heating scheme which will provide heat to 1,200 private homes, businesses and public buildings including West College Scotland, Clydebank Leisure Centre, the Town Hall and Clydebank Library.
Dave Pearson, group sustainable director at Star Refrigeration, said: “At Star Refrigeration, we have always kept sustainability at the forefront of our business model, striving to make Scotland, the UK and the planet a safer place to live for future generations. “
“We were delighted to be involved in bringing the Clydebank project to fruition in tandem with Vital Energi and the local council and we look forward to spreading awareness of the immense potential of water source heat pump technology through the site visit.”
As the largest high-temperature river source heat pump facility in the UK, the Clydebank industrial heat pump is an example of what can be achieved when political and environmental goals align. The site has been shortlisted for two separate awards by the European Heat Pump Association this year: the European Heat Pump City of the Year Award and the People’s Choice Award.
