§ Mr. Eadieasked the Secretary of State for Energy what information he has now received from other EEC countries in relation to cities heated by power station waste, district heating and combined heat and power plants; and if he will set out as much information as is available to him as to the names of those cities, their populations, the number of houses and industries receiving such heating, what percentage it represents of the heating load and the saving in coal equivalent.
§ Mr. Mellor[pursuant to his reply, 14 May 1982, c. 340]: My officials keep in touch with major technicalogical developments overseas but our primary task is to assess the economic and technical feasibility of CHP/DH in the United Kingdom.
§ Mr. Eadieasked the Secretary of State for Energy what savings he now estimates in coal equivalent that in the United Kingdom combined heat and power plants providing district heating on the domestic, commercial and industrial heat load of the United Kingdom would make, applying the criteria set out by his Department's combined heat and power group.
§ Mr. Mellor[pursuant to his reply, 14 May 1982, c. 341]: The Marshall group estimated that the potential savings from CHP in the longer term were 6.29 million tons of coal equivalent per annum. The objectives of my Department's current combined heat and power feasibility programme are to assess the national potential for CHP with district heating and to assess its economic and technical feasibility in specific locations.
§ Mr. Eadieasked the Secretary of State for Energy what is the expected completion date of the industrial combined heat and power scheme in Whitehaven, Cumbria; what is now the expected cost of the project; how much grant is being given by his Department; and under what conditions.
§ Mr. Mellor[pursuant to his reply, 14 May 1982, c. 341]: A number of industrial combined heat and power projects have been considered in the Whitehaven area. Only the scheme at Albright and Wilson has received Government assistance. This received a grant under the Department of Industry's energy conservation scheme. The project was completed, under the terms of the scheme, before September 1979 and the cost of the project was approximately £1.5 million.
§ Mr. Eadieasked the Secretary of State for Energy what estimated energy savings are claimed by the firms using the Hereford 15 Mw plant opened in 1979; and whether the intention that the plant would save importing 15,500 tonnes of coal worth £1½ million in foreign currency has been realised.
§ Mr. Mellor[pursuant to his reply, 14 May 1982, c. 341]: The energy savings made by the firms concerned are the commercial responsibility of their respective managements. The performance of the plant is a management matter for the Midlands Electricity Board. I am advised by the board that preliminary calculations 29W show that during the 12 months period from 1 November 1980 energy equivalent to 9,000 tonnes of heavy fuel oil (16,000 tonnes of coal equivalent), with a value of slightly over £1 million was saved.
§ Mr. Eadieasked the Secretary of State for Energy what is now the estimated cost of the combined heat and power scheme by the Midlands Electricity Board at Fort Dunlop; and what is the estimated date of completion.
§ Mr. Mellor[pursuant to his reply, 14 May 1982, c. 341]: I am advised by the Midlands Electricity Board that the project is estimated to cost £14.5 million at January 1982 prices. Steam will be available from the coal-fired boilers in January 1984, and it is anticipated that the diesel generators and heat recovery systems will be commissioned towards the end of 1984.
§ Mr. Eadieasked the Secretary of State for Energy if he has further considered the likely date when he will be announcing lead cities as the most likely sites for pilot district heating schemes; and how he now proposes to fund them.
§ Mr. Mellor[pursuant to his reply, 14 May 1982, c. 341]: The report from my Department's lead consultants on the technical and economic feasibility of combined heat and power/district heating is expected shortly. Questions of funding will need to be considered in the light of this report.