Milestones Reached in Two Net Zero Projects at NUH
Two major milestones have recently been achieved in Nottingham University Hospitals’ (NUH) journey to deliver their Net Zero ambitions for their hospital sites.
The iconic skyline feature of the chimney at City Hospital has now been fully dismantled, whilst at Queen’s Medical Centre (QMC) the borehole drilling is complete and two of four high-efficiency heat pumps have arrived.
In addition, 9,000 of the 12,000 windows at the QMC hospital have been replaced with double glazing and the rest due to be completed by early next year.
The work at the QMC is part of the Trust’s partnership with E.ON to deliver a 15-year energy efficiency programme to cut CO2 emissions by around 10,000 tonnes a year– the equivalent of taking more than 2,200 cars off the road.
Mike Soroka, Head of Estates at QMC, said: “It’s great to see this project progressing, and anyone who has been to the QMC recently will likely have seen the scaffolding up and the window replacement underway.
“These projects are using cutting edge renewable geothermal heating and cooling technology which is important for NUH’s contribution and commitment to environmental sustainability and will also improve the experience and comfort of our patients, staff and local communities.”
Heat pumps will decarbonise hospital heating
At the heart of the initiative at the QMC is a new £15million energy centre, built and operated by E.ON, providing low carbon heating and cooling to the hospital site. Two of the four high-efficiency heat pumps, each six metres wide, three metres high, and weighing a massive 33 tonnes, have now arrived on-site.
These heat pumps will extract heat from the air and draw from the natural warmth of the earth. To do that, 64 boreholes descending up to 250 metres (the length of seven Nottingham trams end-to-end) have been drilled under our car parks to provide the hospital with a sustainable low carbon energy source.
This innovative heat pump and borehole system will reduce the carbon emissions associated with QMC’s heating and cooling systems by more than 40%, whilst also contributing to cleaner air by lowering nitrogen oxide emissions.
Richard Spencer, Construction Director at E.ON, said: “We’re proud to have reached such a significant milestone in this ambitious project, helping to set new sustainability standards in healthcare.
“At E.ON, we are committed to delivering innovative solutions that have a meaningful impact. Our work with the QMC shows how sustainable energy solutions can help to drive environmental progress and improve operational efficiency whilst directly benefiting those that work, visit and stay at the hospital.”
NUH is the largest recipient of funding from Phase 3 of the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme, initiated by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero and delivered by Salix Finance. The programme is being facilitated by the Carbon and Energy Fund (CEF) which manages complex energy infrastructure upgrades for the NHS.
Over at the City Hospital campus, the energy centre has been in situ for several years, but over recent months the iconic obsolete 164ft (50m) chimney – which used to be part of a coal-fired boiler plant – has been dismantled. This work was completed earlier this in October.
