Pioneering plans to generate low-cost, low-carbon heat and energy for thousands of homes and businesses in north Tottenham have been agreed by Haringey Council. The ambitious District Energy Network (DEN) will bring more affordable energy to around 5,000 new homes planned as part of major regeneration at High Road West and Northumberland Park – and could even power the development around the new £600m Tottenham Hotspur stadium, which will include housing, a hotel and an extreme sports centre.
Owned and managed by Haringey Council, the DEN will deliver competitively priced heat and hot water from a local power station to nearby homes and businesses and generate electricity, while construction will go hand-in-hand with training opportunities for local people.
The DEN – which will see a system of insulated pipes moving energy in the form of hot water or steam – will be more efficient and mean a lower carbon footprint than supplying energy through the national grid, supporting the council’s 40:20 pledge to slash local carbon emissions by 40 percent by 2020. Haringey is also aiming to be zero-carbon borough by 2050.
Cllr Joe Goldberg, Cabinet Member for Economic Development, Social Inclusion and Sustainability, said: “We’re determined that our ambitious regeneration plans go hand-in-hand with our commitment to cut carbon across the borough. Taking the lead on a new municipal energy company would mean bringing greener, cheaper energy from a secure local supply to thousands of new homes and businesses. In the longer term, our ambition is to develop the DEN so that it not only meets the energy needs of the area, but is also run by community customers. The DEN is the latest in a series of bold measures we’ve taken to reduce Haringey’s carbon footprint.”