DALKIA LAUNCHES RISK-FREE CHP

20 February 2009

Dalkia has launched Dalkia Eco2Synergy®, a combined heat and power (CHP) financing scheme with no significant capital investment or risk for customers. Developed for organisations with a large heat requirement, such as universities, schools, leisure centres and manufacturing facilities, Dalkia Eco2Synergy provides the environmental and cost benefits of CHP, with none of the capital risk.

The newest addition to Dalkia CarbonCare, Dalkia’s integrated approach to energy management and carbon saving, Eco2Synergy represents another step forward for organisations wanting to minimise their energy costs and maximise the environmental return on reducing their carbon emissions.

Dalkia will deliver Eco2Synergy to new and existing customers through its specialist CHP design and manufacturing subsidiary Cogenco, while drawing on Dalkia’s worldwide finance, design, install, operate and maintain expertise in CHP for buildings and industrial sites.

Providing a viable and cost-effective alternative to the outright purchase of a CHP, Eco2Synergy will see Cogenco owning the CHP asset itself, meaning that there is limited risk for the customer. Instead customers of Eco2Synergy will have their CHP installed and maintained by Cogenco and receive a monthly invoice at a pre-agreed rate per kWh cost according to the electricity they are generating. This means that organisations can benefit from a consistent approach, where there are no surprise costs. Eco2Synergy customers are supported by Cogenco’s installation, service and maintenance team.

This type of arrangement is for a minimum contracted period of ten years and includes CHP units ranging from 30kWe to 3MWe. A typical Eco2Synergy scheme operating a 200kw CHP will save approximately £45,000 per year in energy costs, and 325 tonnes of carbon.

There are multiple benefits for organisations exploring this route to risk free CHP. The corporate responsibility collateral in reducing carbon emissions and taking an environmentally sound route to energy generation combine to provide a platform for PR, while cost savings are gained from the avoidance of price fluctuations and the loss of energy in transmission over standard grid-fed schemes.

An Eco2Synergy CHP can be powered by a number of fuels including a range of green fuels to provide an output of electricity, combined with heat, usually in the form of hot water, which is captured as a by-product of the electricity generation. In tri-generation CHPs, chilling is also provided for organisations with a requirement for chilled water or HVAC for example. Under Eco2Synergy the customer pays only for the electricity, but not the heat or chilling capacities that their CHP produces.

“Cogenco has been operating this type of approach since 1993, and we currently have over 150 units totalling electrical generation of 52MWe,” says Steve Guttridge, Managing Director of Cogenco, part of Dalkia, “CHP is an ideal route to reduced emissions and significant energy cost savings, but it is not financially viable for all organisations which could benefit from these and the huge advantages of the free heat generation CHP provides. Dalkia Eco2Synergy allows customers with a need for high volumes of heat to access CHP easily by removing the financial risk associated with owning a CHP outright.”

For more information on Dalkia Eco2Synergy visit www.dalkia.co.uk. For more information on Dalkia CarbonCare visit www.carboncare.co.uk