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Carbon reduction is a hot topic today but professionals often have to balance sustainable ambitions with increasingly stretched budgets. Paul Clark, Managing Director at Rural Energy, explains how biomass technology can go a long way to reaching sustainable targets whilst saving money through incredible efficiency levels, particularly for buildings with high heat loads.
INDUSTRY COMMENT BSEE
hen looking for alternative heating methods, biomass technology can often be discounted because of a few common misconceptions, namely: it’s too costly to make the switch or to maintain. However, thanks to a number of advancements in both technology and legislation, modern biomass systems can offer outstanding performance as well as reduced energy costs.
In response to the misconception that installing or converting to biomass technology is too expensive, building service professionals should take into account whole life costs. While biomass systems generally have a high capital cost compared to that of traditional boilers, the cost of generating heat from logs, wood chips or wood pellets is significantly lower than that of oil, electricity or LPG, meaning sizeable savings can be made over the lifetime of the system.
High quality biomass heating systems can achieve efficiency ratings of up to 90 per cent if designed, installed and commissioned correctly and have life expectancies of well over 25 years if properly serviced and maintained.
A recent project completed for Buckinghamshire County Council, which saw the installation of nine biomass boilers, is offering a combined annual saving of more than £30,000 on the authority’s energy bill as well as generating a yearly income of £150,000 from the Renewable Heat Incentive, or £3,000,000 over the 20-year life of the scheme. This means that the boilers will pay for themselves three times over during their lifespan and reduce CO2 emissions by an estimated 10,400 tonnes. What’s more, some of the best biomass heating systems can provide further savings through smart
THE TRUE COST OF BIOMASS W
controls that enable detailed remote monitoring of system performance. This means that engineers can prevent, diagnose and even fix potential faults without having to visit sites at significant expense. Another recently completed project at Highfield and Brookham Schools, saw the removal of 20 oil fired boilers and associated oil tanks and the installation of two 350kW woodchip biomass boilers. The site, which has a heat load consumption of 1.3 million kWh per annum, is now making a saving of 140,000 litres of oil per year as well as an estimated 288 tons of CO2 per year. In order to achieve these results, service and maintenance is extremely important, as poorly maintained systems will not run as efficiently and are at greater risk of breakdown. Also, many engineers are unaware that in order to qualify for the RHI scheme, all systems must be maintained in accordance with manufacturers
recommendations – if they are not, the RHI will not pay out. Maintenance costs, however, need not be a concern as trusted suppliers of biomass heating systems will often offer comprehensive service plans at a significant discount as part of initial investment packages.
More and more engineers are embracing biomass technology and reaping the rewards. The key is finding a reliable biomass installer who can give expert advice both in the initial stages and in on-going aftercare with tailored servicing and maintenance.
Rural Energy is one of the longest standing biomass suppliers, having been in the industry for more than 13 years and can supply boilers from 10kW up to 10MW in output rating.
www.ruralenergy.co.uk
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BUILDING SERVICES & ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEER APRIL 2016 29
REDUCES ENERGY COSTS
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