We have agreed to install a Combined Heat and Power Unit at our main headquarters and Go! Active leisure facility in Clowne.

We bid for and successfully received £455k from the Governments swimming pool support fund to assist with improving energy efficiency of public managed swimming pools and are also investing up to £200k ourselves to install the system.

CHPs generate electricity from an energy source, with a by-product of the generation being heat, which is captured and used to replace the existing heat production from the traditional boilers.

Indicative cost savings for us on future electricity costs have been calculated and are estimated to be in excess of £100,000 per year.

The Arc building has seen an overall increase for both gas and electricity from £110,615 in 2022/23 to £415,276 in 2023/24 an increase of £304,661. It is anticipated that by installing the CHP units it will save approximately £100,000 per annum.

Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing, Councillor Mary Dooley said, “The savings we are talking about are not small sums of money, so it was a ‘no-brainer’ to invest the money and reap the benefits for many years to come.

“Energy costs are rising for everyone, councils included, so we had to do something. Not only will it save us thousands of pounds every year but also reduce our carbon footprint, so it is good news all round.”

A competitive procurement exercise was undertaken, and the contract has been awarded to Pure World Energy who will be on site within the next few weeks to start the installation.