Vital Energi have been awarded the £3m contract by Islington Council to help decarbonise Islington Waste Recycling Centre through the implementation of heat pumps and solar, which will significantly reduce the site’s carbon footprint and accelerate the Council’s journey to net zero by 2030.
Recycling around 55,000 tonnes of household waste each year, Islington Waste Recycling Centre (IWRC) is one of the six recycling and reuse centres in North London that offers its residents a vast range of recycling opportunities. It is also one of the largest contributors to London Borough of Islington’s gas emissions, accounting for 10% of all gas consumption across 55 the Council’s corporate buildings.
Vital Energi will be replacing and upgrading some of IWRC’s existing equipment to renewable technologies and carrying out roof repairs to the Tipping Hall and adjacent office, using the most advanced polymer systems, which will help them become more energy efficient.
We will install 944 solar panels with solar edge optimisers to the north half of the main tipping hall roof and the entire office roof, doubling the capacity of the existing PV system.
Mechanical and electrical works required to be carried out by Vital Energi include the refurbishment of the existing six Air Handling Units (AHUs) by replacing the existing gas fired heating coils with electric and refrigerant coils including associated condensers and ancillary equipment. The existing two Direct Gas Fired Domestic Hot Water (DHW) generation system in the main hall plantroom will also be replaced with an air-to-water source heat pump DHW system.
The existing LV electrical infrastructure will be upgraded to supply the new mechanical equipment being installed. These works include construction of a new LV switch room. Installation of lighting, power, containment, fire alarm and protection services for the new LV switch room which is in the basement of the recycling centre.
Vital Energi always strive to deliver social value within the communities in which they’re delivering projects and have a series of initiatives planned to give back to the Islington community. Initiatives include sponsoring local under 14s and under 12s girls football teams and holding a tournament with a family fun day theme. The Vital Energi team are actively involved with local businesses to develop a supply chain within the community, and they will also host various classroom tutorials on working within the industry.
The project received grant funding from the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme (PSDS), which is administered by Salix on behalf of the Government’s Department for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS)
Work has commenced on-site.
