The Croft School in Stratford-Upon-Avon recently installed a biomass boiler system for free using the little-known ‘Biomass ESCO’ scheme.
Using the ‘Forest Fuels Biomass ESCO’ scheme, the school replaced its fossil fuel boilers with a biomass boiler without having to put any money in up-front. The scheme also paid for the boiler, system design, and installation, planning and running costs. Furthermore, the operational and maintenance costs are all included in the scheme.
The new boiler system will reduce the school’s CO2 emissions by 20,000 kg per year. The new biomass boiler provides 700,000 kW Hours of heat for hot water and heating a year burning high-grade biomass pellets from Forest Fuels. The heat is enough to heat the equivalent of 30 averagely sized houses a year.
“Outsourcing the operational risk of our boilers and simply buying heat as we need it is transformational,” said The Croft School's Director of Project Development Barney Thornton.
“The Forest Fuels Biomass ESCO has made it possible for us to have a brand new boiler system without any capital investment, which was particularly attractive to us with ageing fossil fuel boilers.
“What made it most appealing though was the fact that all future maintenance and repairs are taken care of, so we'll have no unknown costs or resources. Our site staff will save a lot of the time they previously spent looking after our old boilers."
The Biomass ESCO is available to all schools.
"Schools don't pay a single penny upfront, but receive a modern new boiler, designed precisely for their requirements - the only thing they have to pay for is the cost of the heat they use," said Peter Solly from Forest Fuels.
