After two years in development, The Christie NHS Foundation Trust is well on their journey to net zero now the multi-technology decarbonisation scheme at The Christie Hospital has gone live.

Delivering over £1m in annual energy cost savings, and reducing the site’s carbon footprint by around 1,000 tonnes a year, this is a key project in the trust’s sustainability aspirations and puts it a step closer towards achieving the NHS target of net zero by 2040.

The project was part funded by an £8m grant through the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme (PSDS) to support the installation of a self-funding, fully-integrated energy solution comprising a unique blend of renewable technologies.

Vital Energi has installed two air source heat pumps; 640 solar panels, which have been installed on roofs across the hospital to generate independent electricity for the site; and a 2MW battery energy storage system (BESS) where excess electricity can be stored for use at a later time.

As well as enabling the site to maximise the use of onsite generation and help the hospital avoid import electricity at the most-expensive times, the BESS will provide flexibility during times of high demand and help create a smart grid from which the local community will benefit.

Energy efficiency measures have also been installed, including the upgrade of 3,000 lights to LED fittings, the replacement of aged steam infrastructure heating distribution with modern high-efficiency, low-temperature hot water distribution, and optimisation and upgrades to the existing Building Energy Management Systems (BMS).

Alex Beedle, head of estates at The Christie, said: “We are very pleased with the decarbonisation scheme.

“The reduction in carbon emissions is estimated to be around 10% of the total from our site and is a big step towards achieving our ambitions for net zero in accordance with NHS targets.

“We will also make significant savings on our energy bill year after year.”

Phil Mottershead, project development director at Vital Energi, adds “We are incredibly proud to help the trust on its journey to net zero through the installation of low-carbon technologies and futureproofed energy infrastructure at The Christie Hospital, which ensures that the trust not only meets its sustainability goals, but also operates with greater efficiency in the years to come.”

The project was delivered through the Carbon and Energy Fund Framework (CEF), which has been specifically created to facilitate energy infrastructure projects for public sector organisations.