Caerau Mine Water Heat Scheme

Descriptions

Introduction:This notice is being provided to assess the capacity of the market to supply the services outlined in the supporting information and to gauge the level of interest in the proposed scheme and the planned procurement activity. Expressions of Interest should be made as soon as possible to assist the process.The project:Bridgend County Borough Council (BCBC) is promoting an innovative project that will use mine water as a source of heat for domestic properties in Caerau, a former mining town north of Maesteg in the Llynfi Valley in South Wales. This project is the first of its kind at this scale in the UK.The profile that this project is commanding and its innovative nature make it a significant opportunity for reputable, forward-thinking companies in order to raise their standing in the industry and with important stakeholders including funding bodies.Funding:Funding for the project is largely secured. A European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) grant via the Welsh European Funding Office (WEFO) has been agreed which will fund the majority of the project. Match funding is being secured, including from Department for Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) through the Heat Networks Development Unit (HNDU), from the Welsh Government and other sources.Project detail:The project is nearing the end of the feasibility study phase and will shortly move into detailed project development.Technically, the project will extract mine water, heated geothermally from the disused Caerau mine and use this as a heat source. In a Central Energy Centre heat pumps will raise the temperature of a district heating circuit to c70°C, which will circulate around from 150 to 600 houses and flats. These will be a mixture of social and private housing (private housing is the predominant tenure). The private houses will be self-selecting on the basis of the owner/occupier opting into a heat contract which will be offered to them. Marketing this novel an exciting offer to the potential consumers is an important part of the project.There are a limited number of non-domestic properties available for connection; the main one being a primary school.Each house or flat will have a heat interface unit which will be used to heat the domestic heating system (radiators) and the domestic hot water system. The water will return to the Central Energy Centre at c40°C.The current planning assumption is that there will be one Energy Centre, but it is contemplated that up to four might be used to reduce the distance that the c70°C water is circulated to reduce heat loss.The Energy Centre(s) will have a heat store.Gas boilers may be installed in the energy centre(s) as a back up to the Heat Pumps in the event of Heat Pump failure or if there is a failure of the mine water circuit. They may also be used for periods of very high heat demand.The commercial structure is to be decided. It may involve a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) set up by BCBC. The Work Packages as listed below are planned to be used to deliver the project.The Work Packages:There are three main Work Packages that are planned to be subcontracted.1.Detailed Project Development (comprising 6 sub-work packages)2.Client’s Representative3.Design, Build, Operate, and Maintain (DBOM) contractorThere are a number of other Work Packages that will be advised in due course. Some are listed in the current scope of the DBOM contract (3 above), but it may be decided to separate them out as below. For early information, these may include:1.Borehole drilling and commissioning2.Monitoring and evaluation3.Approvals and permissions4.Setting up local project officeExpressions of interest are now invited for the three main Work Packages. When you express interest in the Work Packages (you can select one or more or the three packages), your contact details will be passed on to partner organisations who may contact you to discuss the project in more detail with you and to week your views on a number of aspects.It is expected that those expressing an interest will have recent and relevant experience of projects that are similar to this project. This could include using Heat Pumps in a district heating scheme and/or using mine water or geothermal or other water as a heat source. You will be invited to provide examples of recent projects(s) in which your organisation has been involved and the role taken.Timescale:The tender documents for the Detailed Project Design (Work Package 1) and the Client’s Representative (Work Package 2) will be prepared next to start the tendering process.BCBC will be looking for the optimum overall solution in terms of the delivery, timescale and cost. This will be judged on the basis of the quality of the tenders received for these two Work Packages. It is possible that the organisation that delivers the Detailed Project Design will go on to deliver the Client’s Representative role.The draft programme indicates that the DBOM contract award will be in late 2020 or early 2021. The main works should be completed in early 2022 and connections will continue to be made to houses into 2023.NOTE: To register your interest in this notice and obtain any additional information please visit the Sell2Wales Web Site at https://www.sell2wales.gov.wales/Search/Search_Switch.aspx?ID=86355.