JULY 8 - THE Olympic Delivery Authority today announced the contract award to Elyo, a subsidiary of SUEZ Energy Services, to build, finance, and operate the Energy Centres and Community Energy Networks for the Olympic Park and Stratford City.
The contract award follows news that planning permission has now been secured for the Olympic Park Energy Centre.
SUEZ Energy Services, through its subsidiary Elyo, will build two energy centres, one in the west of the Olympic Park and the other within the Stratford City development, together with approximately 16 kilometres of Community Energy Networks.
The new infrastructure will provide and distribute efficient heating and cooling systems across the Olympic Park and Stratford City for the Games and the legacy communities that will develop after 2012.
The ODA and Stratford City Development Limited (SCDL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Westfield , jointly tendered the contract for a 40-year concession agreement that will see SUEZ Energy Services invest more than £90 million in the Olympic Park and Stratford City development to finance the works.
SUEZ Energy Services will recover their investment through the long term operation rights of the new infrastructure.
ODA chief executive David Higgins said: “The contract with the SUEZ Energy Services is a significant achievement and shows the power of the 2012 Games to generate substantial private sector investment into the Olympic Park and the long-term regeneration of the Lower Lea Valley .
“The Energy Centre will be at the heart of the new utilities networks in the Olympic Park, providing heating and cooling for the Games and to local communities in legacy.
"Sustainability runs right through this project and our energy centre plans will ensure the Games deliver the lasting legacy of a sustainable energy supply for this part of east London.”
John Burton, director of Stratford City for Westfield, said: “Westfield is striving to make the Stratford City development an exemplar project in its use of technologies to reduce carbon emissions. Positive steps such as this are fundamental to creating the right conditions for an environmentally responsible legacy.
"The centrepiece to achieving a long list of environmental objectives is the use of CCHP, which will provide 75 per cent of the electrical power consumption, achieving at least a 20 per cent reduction in carbon emissions.”
SUEZ Energy Services chief executive Jérôme Tolot said: “Providing environmental and energy efficiency is at the heart of our business, and these energy centres will utilise ‘best in class’ technologies to achieve exemplary environmental performance and provide cost effective heating and cooling.
“With this 40-year concession our subsidiary Elyo is demonstrating a long term commitment to providing an innovative and sustainable solution to the east of London.”
The energy centres will use innovative technologies to support the ODA and SCDL’s commitment to using renewable energy and efficient energy systems, as well as demonstrating the SUEZ Group’s commitment to sustainable development.
The Energy Centres will include a Combined Cooling Heat and Power (CCHP) plant that simultaneously produces heating, cooling, and electricity and will also be equipped with biomass boilers using sustainable biomass fuels and natural gas to generate heat.
The technologies used will help ODA reach their target of 20 per cent reduction in C02 emissions through use of renewable energy.
Planning permission has now been secured for the Olympic Park Energy Centre and construction work will begin later in the summer to coincide with the start of work on the main venues in the Olympic Park.
The Energy Centre design is sustainable and flexible to allow future technologies to be used within the centre as they are developed in years to come.
The energy centres have been being designed by John McAslan & Partners.
Part of the utilities infrastructure will be housed within an existing building of historical interest at Kings Yard in the west of the Olympic Park which will be retained and renovated.
This will be used to house the new biomass boilers and visitor’s centre.
