ADE President House of Lords Contribution | Heat is Local

Lord Risby stressed that the Covid-19 has highlighted the importance of local community structures, and that despite the hardships caused, it will be local solutions that offer a way forward towards a greener future.Heating is inherently local. The best solution to decarbonise heat in any area is specific to, and determined by, that particular area.Coupled with the government's commitment to improve energy efficiency, heat will play a key role in a new decarbonisation landscape, especially given the growing role of heat networks in our energy system. Lord Risby reminded the house of Government's commitment to the development of Heat Networks, most recently the announcement of the Green Heat Networks Fund as well as Energy and Clean Growth Minister Kwasi Kwarteng's address at the launch of the Heat Networks Industry Council.Lord Risby gave the examples of projects across the country which are committed to delivering clean, low cost heat to consumers, whilst also delivering jobs and appreticeships thus demonstrating how heat and decentralised energy will play a key role in a green recovery. One such example was Enfield Council in North London, where waste heat is being used to supply over 15,000 homes, saving 5700 tonnes of CO2e per year.It is surely more important than ever to invest in upskilling and retraining, to create a green collar workforce for the future.The House was largely in agreement of the need to bring learnings from the pandemic period to the development of a greener, more efficient energy system, as we look towards COP26 and beyond. The ADE welcomes the inclusion of this topic as part of the debate, showing the decentralised energy sector and the technologies within the sector are ready to be developed to provide much needed jobs and economic boosts across the country.Watch the full House of Lords stream here.