CHP and District Heating
Combined Heat & Power (CHP)
Combined heat and power systems generate electricity and useful heat simultaneously from the same plant. CHP covers a range of technologies but always includes a prime mover (an engine or turbine) driving an electrical generator, plus a heat recovery system. In most CHP installations, the heat recovered supplements heat from the site's boilers and the electrical output displaces some (or all) of the electricity bought from the local supply network.
CHP can provide a secure and highly efficient method of generating electricity and heat at the point of use. Due to the utilisation of heat from electricity generation and the avoidance of transmission losses because electricity is generated on site, CHP can achieve a 35 per cent reduction in primary energy usage compared to conventional power stations and heat only boilers. This can allow the CHP operator to make economic savings where there is a suitable balance between the heat and power loads on his site.
Please click here for a list of CHP suppliers currently serving the Irish Market .
An Examination of the Future Potential of CHP in Ireland
When the Government published its Green Paper on Sustainable Energy in September 1999, the Irish Energy Centre was given the role of producing a report for the Minister of State, Department of Public Enterprise and the Commission for Electricity Regulation on the future potential of CHP in Ireland. Factors for consideration were to include market liberalisation, technology advances, fuel sources, extension of gas grid and financial incentives. The report was to comment on the economic and financial aspects of CHP as well as CO2 abatement costs.
Please click here to download the full report in pdf format
Please click here to download Appendix 6 of the report - "Community Guidelines on State Aid for Environmental Protection
Join our mailing list
The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland has set up a listserver for exchanging news, information and views on CHP related issues in Ireland. A listserver is an automated email system whereby subscribers are able to receive and send email from other subscribers to the list. Subscription is free.
If you are interested in subscribing, please send an email to CHP@seai.ie stating your own email address, that you wish to subscribe to the CHP listserver and perhaps a few words about your interest in CHP (i.e. why you want to subscribe to the listserver).
Irish CHP Association
The requirement for an active industry group was recognised in SEAI’s report on the Future Potential for CHP in Ireland. The Irish CHP Association was formally launched at an event on April 29th 2003. As of 2008 it is organised under the auspices of IBEC.
Its role and purpose is to:
- Provide a forum for networking and the understanding of common issues impacting on the CHP sector
- Inform members of policy and regulatory issues that may impact on CHP in Ireland, with a view to affecting solutions
- Provide leadership and a collective voice for CHP in Ireland to promote the sector and CHP as a technology within Ireland by:
- Preparing and communicating positions promoting the uptake of CHP
- Organising events to promote CHP in Ireland
If you are interested in joining, please contact Conor Gouldsbury in IBEC on 01-6051557.
