The water industry accounts for around 5 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions a year. In other words, just 23 companies generate almost 1 per cent of the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions.
These emissions could double as tighter water regulations take effect under the European Water Framework Directive. According to the Environment Agency, the additional wastewater treatment necessitated could boost energy requirements and hence carbon emissions by more than 110,000 tonnes a year. Moreover, if the volume of water requiring treatment and pumping continues to increase due to flooding – as we have seen recently on an enormous scale – the industry will have an even greater energy demand.
Greater use of renewable power to feed this rising demand is sensible, but comes with its own difficulties, including intermittency. However, the water industry is well placed to assist with dealing with intermittency issues – through greater use of demand-side management.
Demand response allows commercial and industrial sites to reduce their energy consumption during times of grid stress by temporarily turning down non-essential systems. Switching over to standby power assets, such as diesel generators, as part of a routine resilience-testing schedule is an effective way for many companies to save money and reduce the strain on the electricity network. Another option would be for water treatment plants to shift certain energy-intensive operations to times when energy prices are lower.
Sembcorp Bournemouth Water (SBW) has three operational demand response sites, which use assets at water treatment works and supply pumping stations at Alderney, Stanbridge and Knapp Mill. By participating in demand-side management, SBW is both saving money on energy and ensuring it has a reliable contingency for backup power in the event of a blackout or grid failure.
Like a car engine, generators require frequent use to keep them working efficiently and, to ensure emergency preparedness, should be tested at least once a month. Demand response allows standby generators to be tested on-load and at full capacity, making it an ideal way to prove engine resilience and optimise performance.
With no upfront costs involved in setting up demand response, and availability and participation payments made through aggregators such as KiWi Power, water companies are beginning to recognise the win-win situation offered by the energy reduction programme.
Ziko Abram, director and co-founder, KiWi Power