Hull signs £600k deal to install biomass boilers in five primary schools
UPGRADING SYSTEM: Mount Pleasant Junior School in Market Weighton
GREEN energy business Hall Renewables is set to install biomass heaters at five schools in the East Riding.
The £600,000 deal was confirmed by East Riding Council for the first phase of a programme aimed at making education more environmentally friendly.
Biomass boilers using sustainably sourced wood pellets will be put into primary schools in Beverley, Gilberdyke, Hutton Cranswick and Hedon, and at Market Weighton’s Mount Pleasant Junior School
The work is due to be carried out this summer and should be finished before the new heating season in October.
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Councillor Julie Abraham, portfolio holder for children, young people and education, said: “Thanks to prudent financial management by this authority, we are able to continue to invest in our schools and improve their running.
“The council is a keen advocate in trying to reduce carbon emissions and improving our local environment.
“Biomass boilers are a new technology that harness a more sustainable fuel source and are an investment that will help reduce running costs in the future.”
The upgrades are encouraged by the Government-supported Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme and will see the council reimbursed for installation costs.
Planning for the project’s second phase has now begun, with the next six sites under review.
Simon North, group operations director at company owner Hall Construction Group, said: “This represents the culmination of a year’s work involving meticulous design, careful product selection, value engineering and negotiation to ensure the optimum, low-carbon, heating solution is installed in these schools.
“We applaud the forward-thinking and sustainable insight the council has demonstrated by commissioning this project and we are delighted our expertise is being employed within our community.
“We have worked closely with the council’s engineers to also design the fuel supply chain, maintenance regime and RHI application process, which will provide an end-to-end complete solution.”
The boilers are set to run until at least 2034.
Government pay-outs for the new equipment will continue for the next two decades, Mr North said.
Rival supplier Martin Dixon last week announced it had installed a similar system at South Cave Church of England Primary school.