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GEOTHERMAL INTERNATIONAL SIGNALS ITS AMBITION WITH INNOVATIVE NEW ENERGY SOLUTION
Geothermal International (GI), the UK's leading ground source heat pump business, has signalled its intention to remain market leader by launching an innovative energy solution that dramatically cuts the upfront costs to customers of installing GSHP systems.
Retailing giant Sainsbury's is the first customer to sign up for the GI-installed model which provides the entire package from capital financing, design, installation and maintenance, providing tangible benefits from day one.
Sainsbury's has already been recognised for its ground-breaking environmental initiatives and is committed to reducing its absolute operational carbon footprint by 30% by 2020 (equivalent to 65% relative to 2005) under its 20 by 20 Sustainability Plan, and 50% by 2030.
The sophisticated GSHP systems being installed by GI will reduce energy consumption by up to 30% across the stores' refrigeration and heating systems as well as reduce carbon emissions by up to 30%. This not only represents substantial savings for supermarkets but establishes a model for the future. Two installations are already underway in Carlisle and East Kilbride with more to follow.
Neil Sachdev, Sainsbury's Property Director, commented: "We are continuing to lead the way in environmental firsts. We were the world's first to use geo-thermal technology in a supermarket and our partnership with GI is an important milestone in our renewables commitment and supports job creation in the renewable energy sector. GI has a proven track record in the commercial ground source heat pump space. Its understanding of Sainsbury's energy efficiency requirements and its innovative approach to the task as well as its experience will be invaluable in helping us to achieve our 2020 sustainability goals."
It is however the mitigation of the up front capital costs which is particularly attractive in the current economic climate as it reduces the risk of both finance and operations while also allowing customers to hedge against rising future energy prices and carbon tax beyond 2020.
GI is working in partnership with investment firm Octopus Investments, which has a strong track record of delivering innovative solutions that support the growth of the renewables energy market in the UK.
Indeed GI is now looking to capitalise on this partnership and make further inroads into the Energy Services sector delivering innovative solutions across a range of low carbon heat technologies reinforcing its market leading position within the renewable sector.
Octopus combines significant renewables expertise with the ability to raise funds through its Venture Capital Trust and Enterprise Investment Scheme products, to help efficiently deliver renewable technologies to customers.
Commenting on their partnership with GI, Joe Hartman, investment manager at Octopus, said: "We are very excited to have this opportunity to partner GI in supporting Sainsbury's in its renewables commitment. We're looking forward to delivering on our agreement with Sainsbury's and working with the experienced team at GI to establish the installations.
"The investment opportunity in renewables is significant and the market continues to have strong support from the Government. With Octopus working alongside 'best in class' partners we believe we're exceptionally well placed to realise the investment potential of renewables to deliver on our commitments to investors."
The sophisticated GI solution will not only use heat stored naturally underground to heat the supermarket in cold weather, it will also 'sink' waste heat produced by a store's refrigeration system into the ground during the year - thus providing inter-seasonal heat storage, improving the efficiency of the GSHP systems and reducing running costs.
Brian Davidson, CEO of GI commented: "GI has been at the forefront of the renewable sector since the company was first launched in 2000.
"Not only is the contract with Sainsbury's an important win for GI, but it is its innovative financing structure which takes the business into energy efficiency services - a sector GI is set to play a significant part in developing in the future."
About Geothermal International's Ground Source Heat Pumps
GI has pioneered the application of commercial ground source technology within the UK. The Company has a 10 year proven track record with over 160MW of installed capacity. GI's experience in ongoing monitoring of GSHP systems will be invaluable in ensuring the system delivers the required savings. Ground source heat pumps are well proven systems to heat and cool buildings. The GI system captures waste heat from the supermarket refrigeration system and returns it to the Store via the ground loop.
Ground source heat pumps use up to 50% less energy than conventional heating, and can reduce carbon emission by up to 50%.
About Octopus Investments
Octopus Investments is a leading investment specialist with more than £2.5 billion in assets under management. It offers innovative core and satellite investment solutions to UK investors, and a wide range of funding options for exceptional companies.
Octopus has a strong track record of partnering with leading renewable energy installers to provide investment and deliver innovative solutions that support the growth of the renewables market in the UK. Octopus combines significant renewables expertise with the ability to raise funds through its Venture Capital Trust and Enterprise Investment Scheme products, to help efficiently deliver renewable technologies to customers.
Sainsbury's 20 by 20 Sustainability Plan
This industry-leading plan acts as a new cornerstone to Sainsbury's business strategy and sets out 20 sustainability targets to be achieved by 2020. This plan aims to ensure the company remains at the forefront of sustainability to 2020 and beyond. http://www.j-sainsbury.co.uk/responsibility/20-by-20-commitments/
About Sainsbury's
To support Sainsbury's ambition to be the UK's 'greenest' grocer, it has achieved the following:
- Sainsbury's has installed 42 biomass boilers since 2008, which use wood chips or pellets - a renewable resource - to heat the store rather than fossil fuel-based gas.
- As well as using a variety of renewable energy technologies onsite, Sainsbury's has also entered into direct Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) offering a fixed price for 8 - 10 years with onshore wind farms in Scotland, and biomass generators and anaerobic digestion sites. Sainsbury's currently sources over 4% of its power from such renewable sources with plans to exceed 20% by 2020.
- Sainsbury's is the largest UK user of anaerobic digestion. Since late 2011 waste food from all stores that is not donated to charity is backhauled to the depots and put to a positive use, with all the waste bread sent for animal feed and the remainder used for anaerobic digestion to create electricity for the national grid. Sainsbury's donates surplus food to charities such as FareShare and other local organisations to ensure it is not wasted.
For further information contact:
Patrick Sherriff, Marketing Director, Geothermal International
ps@geothermalint.co.uk
M 07774 703 763