The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero has announced the latest round of heat network upgrades across the UK to help reduce the nation's reliance on gas.
Including a first of its kind project in London that will run under and alongside the River Thames, investment will also be made into upgrading existing inefficient heat networks across the UK.
From London to Wales, Manchester and beyond, the schemes will vary in size and scale, but the majority of them will benefit homeowners and businesses in the surrounding areas.
The investments will benefit homeowners and boost the jobs market
Heat networks form part of the Government's Net Zero plans, and allow multiple buildings to be heated from a central source – such as taking excess heat generated from a data centre, or from a factory – via a network of pipes carrying hot water.
Previous projects in 2023 saw investment made into London boroughs where the energy from data centres was harnessed to heat thousands of homes. While in 2024 homes in Bolton became part of a green heat district network scheme that used sewers as an energy source.
This latest round of investment will not only help reduce energy bills for hundreds of thousands of residents, but will also boost the jobs market, with the predicted creation of more than 2,000 jobs as a result of the schemes.
Minister for Local Energy and Jobs, Martin McCluskey, said of the plans: "Clean power and clean heat benefits communities across our country. Building the infrastructure to deliver it is reindustrialising the UK and rolling out cutting-edge energy technology so families can benefit from lower bills, good jobs and energy security.
"And for those already using heat networks, we are upgrading inefficient systems to make sure people get the high-quality, low-cost, reliable heating they deserve."
What new schemes have secured investment?
In London, the £41 million project along the River Thames will supply 650,000 homes with clean heat. According to the Government announcement it, "will initially transport hot water 25 kilometres each day by electric barges down the River Thames and then via a specially constructed tunnel underneath the river, heating homes and businesses across the city along the route.
"The project, subject to planning consent, will help unlock around £5 billion of investment in London’s local heat networks and support skilled jobs in tunnelling, engineering and river transport.
"This is the first of its kind in the UK," says the Government, and is, "designed to make the capital less reliant on gas, with matching systems having operated for decades in cities like Copenhagen, Amsterdam, Vienna and Berlin."
Other projects in the capital include £11.5 million to help develop a scheme in Bexley and Greenwich that is projected to be the largest heat network in the UK, and could benefit up to 100,000 residents when completed.
Homeowners in or around the Oxford Street and Marble Arch areas will see something slightly different thanks to a new £11.4 million water-source heat pump project to take energy from the London Chalk Aquifer.
Further north, 255 homes in Bradford, along with other premises, will see £9.7 million allocated to the extension of the original heat network in the city.
Existing heat networks are set to benefit too
Although new low-carbon schemes will take up the majority of the allocated funding, plans are also in place to upgrade 76 inefficient heat networks.
Improvements will include replacing leaky pipes, insulating pipework to reduce heat loss and replacing interface units in homes – allowing residents to have better control of their heating so they can lower their bills. Projects include:
- Manchester – £1 million to improve the heating system for 130 residents living in Cornwall Court in Gorton and Cundiff Court in Levenshulme
- London – £5.5 million to upgrade the systems serving 1,143 residents at Prospect House in Bermondsey and the Packington Estate heat network in Islington
- Wales – £374,900 to improve the inefficient and outdated systems at Eschol Court in Newport and Victoria Court in Abergavenny, benefitting the 62 connected residents
How much will heat networks reduce bills?
According to the Government announcement, the work will reap rewards for homeowners when considering figures shared from a previous project in Brighton. Upgrades to an existing heat network resulted in the building using 50% less gas and residents saving £438 a year on their heating and hot water bills.
However, residents in and around the proposed new schemes may need to wait a little longer to see the results, as while the Government funding has been approved and announced, some new major infrastructure projects will still be required to apply for planning consent where needed.
