According to latest predictions, early adoption of domestic combined heat and power (CHP) by utilities and manufacturers could easily lead to sales and service contracts worth over £1.5bn per annum (€2.2bn) across Europe by 2010, says technology specialist Cambridge Consultants Ltd (CCL). Utilities could also see additional profitability of £140m (€208m) per annum, based on a figure of 10% electricity generated by CHP.
Combined heat and power units have been installed successfully in commercial and industrial environments, but the greatest area for profitability is in replacement of domestic boilers and installations in new build projects. However, the cost issue is seen as critical to encouraging consumers to adopt micro CHP when replacing or upgrading boiler systems.
"Micro CHP not only addresses the energy efficiency goals of consumers and governments, but offers the possibility to develop a new kind of business model selling heat and power instead of gas and electricity, that can help energy suppliers succeed in today's liberalised markets. With over five million domestic boilers sold every year throughout Europe, micro CHP is a mass volume business opportunity that simply cannot be ignored," says Ian Halliday-Pegg of Cambridge Consultants.
He continued, "It is clear that micro-CHP will shake up the home energy market, but there are still fundamental questions which need to be addressed, and much development and cost reduction is required to transform promising technology into viable products and services for the mass market. Market penetration will only be possible when the systems are at a cost the market can bear."
The challenges faced are many, including selecting the right technology for the environment in which the unit is to be placed; control of the unit itself and of a network of units to ensure optimal performance, and that the units have the facility to be controlled and diagnosed remotely enabling them to be run as a virtual power plant; designing the unit for minimum cost, not just the core technology itself, but the entire system.
CCL created an energy practice last year to help utilities companies bring products to market successfully, bringing together skills already utilised successfully in other parts of the business, including: systems dynamic modelling, model-based control, low cost sensing, responsive and efficient thermo-chemical systems, design for mass production, and low cost power electronics and speed controlled motors.
One of the main benefits to utility companies in adopting micro CHP is an increase in customer retention - the utility company will own the CHP unit so the householder will be tied to that particular supplier. Benefits felt more on a national and economic scale will include fewer power shortages/blackouts, reduced imports of power and lower emissions, which falls into line with the government's targets for emissions and world-wide pressure for a reduction in greenhouse gasses. The householder will see a benefit in the cost savings generated and feel they are doing their bit for the environment too. With pressure on the individual to start leading a 'greener' lifestyle, the implementation of micro-scale CHP will make a significant contribution.
Cambridge Consultants develops breakthrough products, creates and licenses intellectual property, and provides business consultancy in technology critical issues for clients worldwide. For 50 years, the company has been helping its clients turn business opportunities into commercial successes, whether they are launching first-to-market products, entering new markets or expanding existing markets through the introduction of new technologies. With a team of over 300 engineers, designers, scientists and consultants, in offices in Cambridge (UK) and Boston (USA), Cambridge Consultants offers solutions across a diverse range of industries including medical technology, industrial and consumer products, transport, energy, cleantech and wireless communications.
Throughout 2010, Cambridge Consultants celebrates its 50th year in business. Created by three Cambridge graduates in 1960, the company has grown into a leading technology business, renowned worldwide for its ability to solve technical problems and provide innovative, practical solutions to commercial issues. In 2009, the company was awarded the prestigious Queen’s Award for Enterprise in International Trade. For more information visit: www.CambridgeConsultants.com
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CHP (combined heat and power) is a very efficient technology for generating electricity and heat simultaneously, by using conventional generation technologies, fuel cells or 'stirling' engines within a CHP 'plant'. The heat generated in the process is utilised via heat recovery equipment for a variety of purposes including: industrial processes, community heating and space heating, or as described above, in the domestic environment.
Due to the utilisation of heat from electricity generation and the avoidance of transmission losses because electricity is generated on site, CHP typically achieves a 35 per cent reduction in primary energy usage compared with power stations and heat only boilers.1
Domestic or micro CHP systems can be installed in place of standard domestic boilers. A domestic CHP system not only provides heat for the home, but also a proportion of the electricity in the same process. Domestic systems have the potential to be as much as 90% energy efficient, reducing the energy bill for the home and reducing carbon dioxide emissions per household, helping the government toward achieving the targeted reductions under the Kyoto agreement. Excess electricity produced when heating the home in the morning has the potential to be fed back into the grid.
Ref:
1 Source - Combined Heat and Power Association (www.chpa.org)
Cambridge Consultants
George Griffiths
Press & Communications Manager
Tel: +44 1223 420024
George.Griffiths@CambridgeConsultants.com