Viking Energy Network Jarrow

Overview

A flagship renewable energy scheme in South Tyneside is now complete and operational.

The UK-first Viking Energy Network at Jarrow will cut annual carbon emissions by 1,035 tonnes.

The multi-million pound network harnesses low grade heat from the River Tyne and exports it to council owned buildings, including:

Jarrow Focus leisure centre
Three residential tower blocks
Jarrow Business Centre
Jarrow Town Hall

The initiative received the award for Best Climate Action or Decarbonisation Initiative at the 2024 Association of Public Sector Excellence (APSE) Awards.

In October 2024 it also won in the Public Sector Project category at another prestigious national award, the RICS (Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors) Awards 2024.

It's now been shortlisted as a finalist in the Climate Action Award with Keep Britain Tidy.

How it works

The scheme, which is the first of its kind in the UK, combines:

a river source heat pump
a combined heat and power (CHP) back-up system
a 1 megawatt solar farm
a private wire electrical network with storage battery

An energy centre has been built on the banks of the river and an extensive pipe network is used to distribute the heat across the town.

Water source heat pumps work by extracting heat from a body of water, compressing it to increase the temperature and then converting it into useful energy in the form of hot water in a network of insulated pipes.

The solar farm will provide much of the electricity to power the heat pump, ensuring it will run close to carbon neutral in the summer months.

The combined heat and power (CHP) back-up system will be used in the event that the solar panels do not generate enough electricity. It is a highly-efficient process that harnesses the heat that is a by-product of the electricity generation process, and which would otherwise be wasted.