Replacement CHPs deliver significant cost savings for prominent hotel

A prominent hotel at Heathrow Airport in West London has partnered with Centrica Business Solutions for years. Over 17 years ago, we installed two 230kW Combined Heat and Power (CHP) units at the hotel, to deliver their heat and electricity demands.  

The installations have been well-used. Thanks to the expert maintenance we’ve delivered to keep the units running at their best, the installations have operated for 130,000 and 124,000 hours respectively – an exceptional run life, which is double the expected lifetime. 

Fully financed, turnkey solution 

Impressed by the performance delivered over the years, when the time came to replace the CHPs, the hotel once again reached out to Centrica Business Solutions.  

After meeting with the hotel chain to understand their current and upcoming energy needs, we identified that they now have reduced heat demand. We recommended that the units were replaced with a 230kW unit and a 125kW unit, to ensure the solution was right-sized to their needs. A full turnkey solution was developed to ensure the installation process was as smooth as possible. Interruptions to the hotel operations and guest comfort were kept to an absolute minimum.  

Significant cost savings secured 

The two CHPs have been fully financed by Centrica Business Solutions through a Discount Energy Purchase (DEP) financing agreement. This is a direct agreement with Centrica, with no other third-parties or banks involved. The hotel chain incurred no upfront costs for installing the new CHPs. Instead, over the next 15 years, they’ll pay an agreed p/kWh rate for the electricity generated by the CHP. After accounting for increased gas consumption costs, the amount they will pay will be less than they would have spent if they used grid electricity – helping the hotel chain to make significant savings for the long term. 

As part of this turnkey solution, we will also continue to deliver a comprehensive Operations and Maintenance (O&M) service to manage the aftercare of the CHPs. This will make sure that the CHPs deliver optimal performance throughout their lifetime and fulfils their potential for maximum productivity and cost savings. 

Thanks to these new CHPs, this hotel chain will make cost savings of £230,000 a year on their electricity bill, compared to purchasing the same amount of energy from the grid. Added to this, they’ll be getting heat free of charge, which will keep the hotel warm at no expense.