This presentation formed part of the Farming Futures workshop 'Profitable business in a changing climate: Renewables Masterclass' March 22nd 2010

1. Wood fuelled Heating
in Rural Estates & Houses
An introduction
dawn.riggett@econergy.ltd.uk

2. Econergy Ltd: The Company
Award winning projects
• UK’s premier biomass heating
supplier
– Founded 1999
– > 400 projects sold to date
– 13% of UK installed base
– 10KW to 2MW
– 19% owned by British Gas
• Econergy offering
– biomass boilers
Rocks Green – 91 housing project
– complete solution design & supply
– district heating
– biomass heat supply - sell metered
heat
• Commercial market sectors:
– schools, social housing, hospitals,
leisure centres, care homes, rural
developments, offices, etc.
• Domestic boilers
Shortwood school
– increasingly via installer network

3. Design & Supply of
Complete Biomass Heating Solutions
• Company Certification:
Biomass Heating Life Time Cost (e.g.) – Constructionline, CHAS (H&S);
School: 500KW, 1.5m kWhs pa, 30 yr life MCS installer (quality), REAL
Code (OFT approved code of
£1.8 million lifetime cost of which: practice)
- boiler & feed system 5% • Products Certification:
- total installed cost 15% – Energy Technology List (all),
- maintenance 10% Clean Air Act Exemptions (all),
MCS (<45kW)
- wood fuel cost 70%
• Public sector frameworks
– YPO/Pro5 “Biomass Managed
service” awarded Dec 2009 for 3
• Turn-key design & supply of years – national
biomass heating solutions – IESE “SAVE” framework - south
– Biomass boilers, fuel reception, east
mech & electrical, district heating
• British Gas CERT/ CESP funding
– design, procurement, supply,
installation, commissioning
provider
– Biomass community heating
– Operation, maintenance &
biomass heat supply • REA Board member
– Biomass Design Toolkit for – National biomass heating policy
Consultants leadership (RHI, air quality, fuel
sustainability etc.)

4. Econergy Customers include:
Rural projects in Italics
Government Departments Social Housing District Heating Domestic (100+)
Forestry Commission (14) Sheffield Homes (4)
DEFRA Berneslai Homes, Barnsley (4) Commercial
Foreign and Commonwealth Office Doncaster Homes Marks & Spencer
South Shropshire Housing Wessex Water
Hospitals & Care Homes Association Skipton Building Society
Royal Cornwall Hospital Bromford Corinthia Housing Association The Co-operative Group
Royal Victoria Hospital, Fife
Cyon Valley Hospital, Wales Education Contractors
Birtley House Care Home Bristol Council Schools (6) NG Bailey
Oxon Care Home Barnsley Council Schools (5) Balfour Beatty ESL
University of Cambridge Crown House
South Lanarkshire Council schools (3) Kier Group
Local Council Offices
Suffolk Council schools (4) Skanska
Worcestershire County Hall
National Star College Bovis
Southwark Council, London
Berkshire College of Agriculture Lorne Stewart
Maidstone Council
Bradford City Hall Mitie
Rural Developments Haydon Young
Duchy of Cornwall (4) Crest Nicolson
Leisure Aske Estate (4) Sir Robert McAlpine
Bowood Golf Club & Spa Kevin McCloud Briggs & Forrestor
Doncaster Leisure Centre Torry Hill Farm Dodd Group
Telford Leisure centre & theatre Parkend Estate (2) Warings
Paignton Zoo Crocodile Farm
T Clarke
The Living Rainforest
Charities Interserve
National Trust (12) BAM
RSPB

5. Europe’s Leading Biomass Boilers
Fröling, Austria (#1 Europe)
Fröling S4 8KW to 1,000 kW
30kW 25,000 boilers per annum
log boiler
500 employees
Established 1961
KWB, Austria
10 kW to 300 kW
7,000 boilers per annum Fröling TM500 kW wet wood chip boiler
Fröling 20kW
pellet boiler
KWB 100kW pellet boiler Fröling 3MW biomass test centre KWB Powerfire 300KW wood chip boiler

6. Why wood heating ? low carbon fuel
Biomass heating is often the lowest cost way to reduce
CO2 emissions after energy conservation
CO2 emissions per unit of energy supplied
450
400
350
W oodfuelled heat
300
W ind power
Grams of CO2 per kWh
250 Solar PV m -si
200 Solar PV p-Si
Natural gas heating
150
Light fuel oil heating
100
50
0
Sources: GaBE Project: Comprehensive Assessment of Energy Systems. Dr Thomas Heck, Paul Scherrer Institute, Switzerland, March 2002.
http://gabe.web.psi.ch/lca.html; Greenhouse Gas Balance of Bioenergy Systems - A Comparison of Bioenergy with Fossil Energy Systems. G
Jungmeier, Joanneum Research, University of Graz, Austria, 1999. Gerfried.jungmeier@joanneum.ac.at

7. Why Wood fuel ?
- local jobs & fuel security
via chipping
from tree surgeon
& storage to
or forest
low carbon heat

8. Biomass heating system
- design considerations
• What is the customer’s objective(s) ?
– CO2 reduction, fuel cost reduction, meet building/planning regs.
• Peak heat loss, profile and physical distribution of buildings
– Biomass boiler(s), buffer tank, peak/stand-by fossil fuel boilers
– Option: Distribution pipework & interfaces for community heating
• Wood fuel selection & logistics
– Fuel type, availability & price v. boiler specification
– Wood fuel delivery vehicle v. fuel store design
• Space & access for biomass boiler plant
– Fuel delivery, receipt, storage options & delivery vehicle needs
– New build v. Retrofit
– Capital cost v. fuel & operating supply cost
• Air Quality: Boiler installation & flue Design
• Planning considerations (visual, air quality, noise, traffic….)
• Hydraulics & controls philosophy

9. Which fuel type ?
Wood chip Wood pellet Logs
Heat cost: 1.5 - 3.5p/KWh Heat cost: 4 - 5.5p/KWh Heat cost: 1- 3.5p/KWh
10KW to 10MW 10KW to 1000KW 15 to 70KW
Low energy density High energy density Easy to handle
(600KWh/m3) (3450KWh/m3) Known & existing supply
Automatic feed for 24x7 Can transport long chain
hour operation distances Can produce from small
Medium /large scale Fuel “flows” scale wood land
operation is most economic Fuel delivered by blower –
fuel store generally simpler
& cheaper
Considerations Considerations Considerations
Need local supplier Pellet quality is critical Need to load manually at
Quality can be variable Cost least once per day
Fuel reception design is key Need large scale Only suitable for small
& can be expensive production to keep costs scale
Fuel does not flow & is down
difficult to handle Unlikely to be local

10. How does the technology work ?
Wood chip/pellet boiler with spring outfeeder
•Fully automated
•90%+ efficiency
•Auto-ignition
•ash removal
•heat exchanger cleaning
•particulates removal
•Spring outfeeder feed system
•Suitable for wood chips or
pellets
28kW – 750kW

11. Wood fuel delivery:
Wood chip
Capital cost v. fuel supply cost

12. Hawk Business Park, Nr York
• Redevelopment of Historic rural
buildings
• 15 business units with separate
controls & underfloor heating
• Units rented out
• Marketed to businesses as a
environmentally friendly
workplace
• 100kW Froling TMc boiler
• 2 x 2,000 litre buffer & no back-
up
– low summer DHW demand
• Biomass boiler & district heating
supply by Econergy
– Supporting high tech
development concept
• Owner: Sir Ben Gill
– former NFU President, Biomass Task Force Chair
– Opened by Princess Anne

13. RSPB, Barnsley 100KW wood chip
Micro heating network (several heat circuits)
• Visitors centre & café
• Education wing
• Volunteer accommodation
• Offices & meeting rooms
• Rangers cottage
Wood fuel: 55 tonnes per annum at 30% moisture
Installed & operating since 2004

14. Parkend Estate, Northumberland
Wood Fuel Business Diversification
• From Customer……
– 2 x Froling 100kW TMc boilers
– Heating for main house, 3
cottages & several flats ++
– Distributed back-up oil boilers
– Heat meters installed for flats
and cottages for sale of heat to
tenants
• To major fuel supplier
– Wood fuel from estate
woodlands and chipped into
near-by barn
– Parkend Estate is now a
leading fuel supplier shipping
4,000 tonnes per annum
• Newcastle schools etc.
• And boiler installer

15. How does the technology work ?
Froling P4 Pellet boiler
• Available from 10-60kW
• Combustion control
– Lambda sensor
– Flue gas sensor
– ID Fan
– Modulation to 40% output
• Automatic heat exchanger cleaning
• Automatic ignition
• Whole house heating control system
• No return feed mixing device required
• Suction feed as standard

16. Froling P4 Pellet Fuel Feed
Screw Auger System
•For complete emptying of fuel store
•Very large capacity fuel stores possible
Universal Suction System
•Very flexible
•One or more suction points
•Suits small or awkward shape fuel stores

17. How does the technology work ?
KWB USP Easyfire Fuel Feed
Elbow Worm
Conveyor
Attached Fuel Hopper 400L
Big Bag System

18. Wood fuel delivery:
Pellets
Or bags of pellets delivered on a pallet

19. Upton House, Oxfordshire
• National Trust cottage
• 15kW Froling P2 pellet boiler
• Heating for rented holiday
cottage
• No backup boiler
• Boiler controls
– 1 x Weather Compensated Heating
Circuit
– 1x DHW cylinder
• Aesthetic fuel store added to
house
• A Greenearth Energy
distributor project

20. Tufton Lodge, Cumbria
• Private house in v.remote
location
• 30kW KWB USP pellet boiler
with on board fuel hopper
• No backup boiler
• Boiler controls
– 1 x Weather Compensated
Heating Circuit
– 1x DHW cylinder
• 500L buffer tank
• £2,000 Clearskies grant
• Owners runs environmentally
friendly business

21. How does the technology work ?
Froling S4 Log boiler
• Available from 15-60kW
• Downdraft gasification
• High temperature combustion
• Combustion control
– Lambda sensor
– Flue gas sensor
– Air actuators
– Modulation to 40% output
• Heat exchanger cleaning
• ID fan for easy start
• Whole house heating control
system
• Use wood available from the land
• Logs can be up to 500cm long and
need to be seasoned

22. Greenshop, Stroud
• Renewable energy shop
• Home to Eco Engineering
– An Econergy domestic &
small commercial installer
• 40kW FHG log boiler
• No backup boiler
• 2000L solar thermal store
providing DHW and UFH
throughout the building
• Funding obtained via LCBP
Phase 2

23. Rocks Green, Ludlow: 91 new build houses
Inside Housing National Award: “Sustainable Large Housing Project of the Year” (2009)
• Client: South Shropshire Housing
Association
• Econergy design & installation:
– Biomass energy centre incl.
• 2 x 150kW KWB biomass boilers
• 2 x 200kW peak oil boilers
– 1,200 metres of twin
underground pipe
– 91 interface units incl. heat
meter, heat exchanger and
pressure balancing valves
• c. 300 tonnes of wood fuel per
annum
• 150 tpa CO2 saving c.f. gas
• £500,000 M&E capex
• Econergy’s design - most cost
effective for CO2 reduction of 16
scenarios evaluated by Arups

24. National Star College, Nr Cheltenham
• Special Needs College
– New build biomass heating
energy centre for mission
critical heat 24 x 7 x 365
– Supplying 14 buildings
• Econergy turn-key design &
installation
– Retrofit installation
– 500 + 320kW Froling wood chip
boilers
– Underground 4m x 7m x 3m
scaper floor fuel bunker
– 2 x 400kW back-up oil boilers
– All plant room equipment
– 1.6km underground htg main
– 14 local interfaces replacing 20
oil boilers 3 x 5,000 litre buffer
tanks (heat stores)
– £550,000 M&E capex
• Rural fuel supplier:
Goucestershire Wood Fuels

25. Financial Support for Biomass Heat
• Current Funding mechanisms:
– Bioenergy capital grant: commercial (£4m)
• Up to 40% of eligible costs until March 2009
(commercial)
– Low Carbon Building program schemes –
Domestic and Commercial options
– CERT – biomass community htg (£1m +)
• 30% to 65% of all costs, must be installed by Feb
2011
• offered via Econergy from British Gas
National Star College: 820 kW District Heat
– CESP – selected postcodes – from British Gas
– Carbon Trust zero interest loans - SMEs
– CSEP grants – certain not for profit
• Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) 2011+
– Payments to owners of plant from April 2011
onwards for any boilers installed after July 2009
– Domestic (<45kW): 9p/KWh
– Small commercial (45 to 500KW): 6.5p/kWh
– Large commercial (>500kW): 1.6 to 2.5 p/KWh
– Domestic & small commercial will be deemed

26. Domestic: Proposed RHI Economics
• 20KW Froling pellet boiler • 20KW Froling log boiler
• 4 bedroom house (120m2) • 4 bedroom house (120m2)
– BRE standard demand – BRE standard demand
• £15k installed cost • £15k installed cost
• £2,070 saving pa • £2,565 saving pa
– 20,686 kWhs pa (deemed) – 20,686 kWhs pa (deemed)
– Pellet at £180/tonne – Logs at £60/tonne (2p/KWh)
(4.4p/KWh) – Oil at 42p/litre (5.4p/KWh)
– Oil at 42p/litre (5.4 p/kWh) – + RHI at 9p /KWh
– + RHI at 9p/kWh
Simple payback 7 yrs Simple payback 5+ yrs
RHI Payback for 30 and 40kW boilers is likely to be
between 4 to 8 years against oil

27. Rural District Heating
Indicative RHI Payback
D2) Rural Estate: Small District Heating
Floor area Heat Hot water Total (kWhs
300kW (m2) (kWhs) (kWhs) Number per annum)
Large House 8 bed, 600m2, solid wall 600 143535 3742 1 147277
Offices (solid wall) 500 112500 0 1 112500
Offices (insulated) 500 75000 0 1 75000
4 x 4 bedroom houses stone 120 28707 3742 4 129796
8 x 3 bed semi bungalow (stone) 62 16390 3742 8 161056
Total 1,782 625,629
Turnkey boiler plant room £250,000
Heat distribution & connections (mainly soft dig) £200,000
Total capital costs £450,000
Deemed RHI income per annum £40,666
Additional metered amount (up to 15% distribution losses) £1,877
Total RHI income per annum (excl tax) £42,543
Assume "X" p/kWh fuel cost benefit v. oil £12,513 2 p/kWh fuel difference
Incremental O&M cost pa (v. 15 oil boilers) £0
Net income pa (RHI + fuel saving) £55,055
Simple payback (years) 8
Conclusion: This is OK
Warning: These numbers should not be relied upon as District heating & deeming mechanisms are not yet agreed
Based on £80 / tonne of chip at 30% m/c and oil at 37p/litre; Each 5p/litre oil price increase yields £3,000 pa incremental savings

28. Econergy: “Best Cost” Summary
Why biomass heating ? Why Econergy ?
• Lowest cost way to reduce CO2 • > 10yr UK market leading track
emissions after energy saving record for turn-key biomass
• Fuel security through diversity & heating solutions
local supply • 8 yr experience of biomass heat
• Local jobs in wood fuel supply (incl fuel supply)
production & supply • Very strong in house design &
• Mature technology project management
• Fully automated low hassle • Excellent national service and
heating fuel supply network
• Safer than gas & oil • British Gas CERT & ESCo
financing
• Full company and product
certification
• Leading European biomass
boiler suppliers (Froeling &
KWB)

29. Where to look for biomass heating ?
Initial information required:
• Typically lowest cost way to
reduce CO2 emissions after • Customer, building type(s) &
energy saving location
• Space & access is essential • Economic driver(s)
• Ability to fund high capital cost – Fuel price, CRC, RHI, Planning,
• Local wood fuel supply (if chip) Building regs
• Education or PR – ROI required (yrs, %)
• Security of supply • Boiler sizing
– Peak heat demand & profile
– Current boilers
– Building(s) floor area
– Gas / oil usage
• Layout & distances (drawing)
• Space and access
– Plant room
– Fuel store
– Lorry access (tip, blown etc.)

30. Further Information & contacts
• More information:
– Carbon Trust Biomass Heating Design Guide
– Econergy – Biomass Heating Design Toolkit
– EPUK Biomass and Air Quality
• Please call us for design assistance
• Enquiry form on web-site www.econergy.ltd.uk
• sales@econergy.ltd.uk