A new, low-carbon combined cooling, heating and power solution is being created for St Bartholomew’s Hospital in London as part of the first fully-financed PFI deal of its kind.
Delivered by Skanska, the project is part of Sustainable Development Capital‘s (SDCL) Powering Health collaboration with GE, Clarke Energy and the NHS Confederation.
Under the deal SDCL has provided finance for Skanska to deliver a low-carbon combined chilling/heating and power (CCHP) solution at the hospital. The £2.5m investment will be made by the UK Energy Efficiency Investments Fund, which has launched a £50m fund supported by the Green Investment Bank.
It is an important step for us in achieving our sustainability goals and we believe that collaboration and partnership is key to delivering successful, sustainable healthcare for the future
The project at St Bartholomew’s is the first under the strategic collaboration formed between SDCL, GE, Clarke Energy and the NHS Confederation to finance and implement CHP solutions in the NHS. It is being procured and delivered through a variation to the existing PFI contract with Skanska.
The project involves the installation of a 1.4MW GE Jenbacher CCHP system with 250W absorption cooling, designed to maximise financial savings, increase efficiency of operation, and improve system reliability and resilience. The CCHP solution will be delivered in conjunction with the construction of a new energy centre at the hospital.
CCHP is a default approach to delivering lower carbon electricity and heat under the recent EU Energy Efficiency Directive. The project at St Bartholomew’s is expected to deliver significant carbon emission reductions.
Chief executive of SDCL, Jonathan Maxwell, said: “The NHS is one of the largest consumers of energy in the UK and provides the most critical of infrastructure services for the country. We are delighted to be delivering a first-of-a-kind project to deliver energy efficient and lower carbon heat and power to meet this historic and iconic hospital’s needs.”
Energy and Climate Change Minister, Greg Barker, added: “This is exactly the type of project which the Green Investment Bank was set up for. Technology like CCHP has the potential to make significant emissions and cost savings in energy intensive operations such as hospitals. But it requires significant financial backing, so the partnership funding between SDCL and the Green Investment Bank is something I hope will be replicated to make many similar projects a reality.”
The ability to embed an energy performance contract within a PFI opens up a whole new world of carbon and energy reduction opportunities throughout the NHS estate in the UK
And Trevor Payne, director of estates and facilities at Barts Heath NHS Trust, said: "The project will deliver a combined cooling, heat and power solution to one of the oldest and most-prestigious hospitals in the world. The agreement is the first of its kind and is being delivered through our existing PFI contract. It is an important step for us in achieving our sustainability goals and we believe that collaboration and partnership is key to delivering successful, sustainable healthcare for the future.”
Commenting on the new approach to PFI contracts, Richard Byers, head of green business for Skanska, told BBH : “This project is a fantastic example of partnership through all of the stakeholders on the energy performance contract, and those on the existing PFI. The ability to embed an energy performance contract within a PFI opens up a whole new world of carbon and energy reduction opportunities throughout the NHS estate in the UK.”