Wales & West Utilities (WWU) is helping out residents in the southwest of England with the Greener Homes Advice Line, a free service launched in collaboration with YES Energy Solutions. Funded with a £500,000 grant from the WWU’s Vulnerability and Carbon Monoxide Allowance (VCMA), this initiative offers callers expert advice on energy-saving strategies, understanding bills and enhancing home energy efficiency. The project is set to support thousands of customers while potentially saving each household over £500 during its two-year duration.
Biofuel and solar energy power: the way forward for WWU
Wales & West Utilities (WWU) is leading the way in sustainable operations with Project GREEN and transforming its equipment line-up for a greener future. Traditional diesel and petrol tools are being replaced on a trial basis with innovative, eco-friendly alternatives to see how their performance measures up. Several fleet vehicles are also being run on hydrotreated vegetable oil fuel (HVO), which cuts emissions by up to 90%. Also in the arsenal are a new 3,000-litre solar-powered bowser, which uses photovoltaic panels, and a fully electric 1.9-tonne excavator.
Wales & West Utilities have partnered with ARUP, a global engineering consultant, to produce a report to explore how hydrogen could transform the aviation sector across their region. Hydrogen in Aviation explores how hydrogen could be used at airports in Bristol, Cardiff, Exeter and Newquay.
The report also helps potential users and suppliers to make practical plans to incorporate hydrogen into their operations. Pipeline builders can use the report to plan infrastructure changes and support the advancement of the hydrogen economy. This is an exciting first step in decarbonising our air travel.
CKHH companies are enacting adaptive strategies to mitigate climate change, including leading the charge in the hydrogen revolution. Day 2 of the Global Climate Action Conference explored how CKHH companies deal with climate-change extreme events and how they are transitioning to climate-friendly energy generation.
Terminally ill patients should not be consumed with anxiety over their power bills. This is the simple concern being addressed by Northern Gas Networks (NGN) in partnership with end-of-life charity, Marie Curie, Wales & West Utilities (WWU), SGN and Cadent. Two Energy Support Officers will be hired to work with those in need to improve their situation in the face of rising energy bills. The programme will also provide energy-management specific training to current Marie Curie staff in the community so that they can help people to access grants and benefits and reduce the stress of costs.
The UK is a global leader in achieving net-zero ambitions. Wales & West Utilities is helping businesses and gas consumers in the region with the transition to a greener fuel source, hydrogen. The HyLine Cymru pipeline is expected to stretch across south Wales, connecting customers to a clean-burning hydrogen option. Commercial-scale production of clean hydrogen in Pembrokeshire, Port Talbot and the Celtic Sea ensures that the generation of hydrogen is economically feasible and allows even more customers to benefit. Evidence from feasibility studies will enable projects like these to be launched in the future, supporting the widespread switch to hydrogen in the early 2030s.
Wales & West Utilities is helping profoundly deaf people to protect themselves from the odourless, invisible silent killer, carbon monoxide, as well as smoke and heat. Working with the local Fire and Rescue Service, they are funding the installation of Wi-Fi-enabled alarms, complete with strobe lights and vibrating pads, in the homes of deaf people and their families. Traditional sound-based alarms may suffice in other circumstances, but installed alarms and wearable devices will specifically help this community. The project is funded by Wales & West Utilities’ Vulnerability & Carbon Monoxide Allowance, designed to support the most vulnerable people in our communities.
International Women’s Day 2022 was the day to launch the utility’s new Women’s Inclusion Network. One of the goals is to inspire more women to choose a career in the gas industry. Women will share life experiences and provide advice and support to their colleagues in, or considering joining, the gas sector.
A Wales & West Utilities Army reservist made the switch from his job as team leader in the gas emergency and pipeline service to assist with the British Army’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. He admits that retraining to work in the fight against coronavirus “was a bit of a culture shock”, but his work helped keep front-line medical professionals and the community protected from COVID-19.
Wales & West Utilities (WWU) brings mains gas to the new NHS Nightingale Hospital in Exeter. Building new infrastructure is normally a long, drawn-out affair, but the COVID-19 field hospital couldn’t wait. Connecting this high gas-usage facility was urgent and WWU delivered.
