The Mayor of London has awarded funding through a support agreement with Switch2 Energy to develop a decarbonisation scheme for the Royal Arsenal heat network in Woolwich.

The funding comes from Mayor's Local Energy Accelerator programme, which is 50% funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

It is part of the Mayor's ambition to make London a zero-carbon city by 2030, with the aim to deliver annual savings of 20,000 tonnes of CO2 equivalent per annum and install 3MW of renewable energy capacity by summer 2023.

Switch2, which operates Berkeley Homes' Royal Arsenal residential heat network, will develop a detailed decarbonisation retrofit plan, which will include the replacement of existing gas boilers with air source heat pumps.

This could provide the 755 homes connected to the heat network with heating and hot water from a renewable source ¬¬¬¬- with the aim of improving network efficiency and reliability, while delivering CO2 savings of up to 300 tonnes per year.

Switch2 will simulate various design and phased development options to keep heat tariffs affordable for residents, while maximising the carbon savings of switching from gas to renewable heat pumps.

Richard Harrison, CEO of Switch2 Energy said: "Heat networks are a proven and cost-effective method of decarbonising UK heating and we are leading the way in utilising innovative energy technologies and data optimisation to raise efficiency and sustainability performance. We're proud to contribute to London's visionary plan to become a zero carbon city by 2030."