Source
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/assessment-of-the-costs-performance-and-characteristics-of-uk-heat-networks — original source (opens in a new tab; the file is not redistributed)
DECC/AECOM — Costs & Characteristics of UK Heat Networks (2015)
The district-heat connection-cost primary for the F14 thermal reticulation twin (RT_288) — UK, interim
UK Department of Energy & Climate Change / AECOM, Assessment of the Costs, Performance, and Characteristics of UK Heat Networks (URN 15D/022, © Crown copyright 2015). The authoritative buried-pipe + heat-interface-unit (HIU) cost primary. UK figures — no NZ district-heat scheme cost exists; carried as interim with a GBP→NZD-indicative + boundary caveat.
Summary
A UK-government cost study of heat networks (district heating), providing the per-metre buried-pipe and per-dwelling HIU capital costs that the NI model needs for the F14 thermal reticulation twin — the heat-distribution network that connects a community biomass boiler to dwellings, currently uncosted so swept community-biomass designs understate cost. NZ has essentially no residential district-heat schemes, so these UK figures are the best-available primary, carried as interim.
Key claims
- claim: "Buried heat-network pipework cost: 'Buried heat network pipework costs average around £1000 / m over a heat network, although this ranges from £422 / m to £1472 / m depending on the size and nature.' (Cost table: main network pipework average £984/m, high £1,472, low £422.) Indicative NZD at £1≈NZ$2.15: ~NZ$2,200/m (range ~$900–3,200). 2015 GBP, not inflation-adjusted."
source_location: "Report cost tables (main network pipework £/m) + summary text ('average around £1000 / m … £422 / m to £1472 / m')"
- claim: "Per-dwelling connection: domestic heat interface unit (HIU) £1,075/dwelling (range £738–£1,326); 'connection to HIUs' £579/dwelling (range £491–£668). 'HIUs and heat meters appear to dominate the capital cost of domestic [heat networks].' Indicative NZD (£1≈NZ$2.15): HIU ~NZ$2,300/dwelling, connection ~NZ$1,250. 2015 GBP."
source_location: "Report cost tables (Domestic HIUs cost per £/dwelling £1,075; connection to HIUs £579) + text ('HIUs and heat meters … dominate the capital cost of domestic')"Neobiome Intelligence relevance
The F14 thermal reticulation twin. The model prices the community biomass boiler (~1,100/kW_th, [[cr_028_nz-biomass-heat-cost-fuel-feasibility-2026|CR_028]]) but not the heat-distribution network — so [[biomass_district_heating]] designs understate cost. This supplies the **marginal district-heat connection**: buried insulated pipe **~£1,000/m ≈ NZ2,200/m** (range ~900–3,200) + **HIU ~£1,075/dwelling ≈ NZ2,300** + connection ~£579 ≈ NZ1,250 → a per-dwelling *connection* of ~**NZ3,500–5,000** (HIUs dominate) plus the shared network pipe. The trench portion is corpus-anchored (CR_037/CR_027, as for micro-hydro).
Boundary flag (critical)
This is the marginal connection — it assumes each dwelling already has hydronic emitters (radiators/underfloor). Most NZ homes do not (they run heat pumps / resistance), so a real NZ community-biomass district-heat scheme must add a full in-home hydronic fit-out (~NZ
18,000–30,000/home**, [[url_021_modserve-nz-hydronic-cost|URL_021]]). So the true per-home district-heat cost spans **~NZ3.5–5k (homes already hydronic) to ~NZ$21–35k (incl. new emitters) — the model must pick the boundary explicitly. This is exactly why F14 flags that community-biomass designs understate cost.
Interim/UK caveats: 2015 GBP (not inflation-adjusted — 2015→2026 UK CPI would push ~+35%); GBP→NZD ~2.15 indicative; UK ground/labour differ from NZ. A new model cost line (thermal reticulation twin) — a model-design addition, flagged not auto-applied.
Research targets
Documents to retrieve
- None new.
Research gaps
- RT_294 — a real NZ community/campus district-heat scheme costing (e.g. a NZ hospital/university hydronic distribution, or an EECA-funded wood-energy heat project with per-connection/network costs) to replace these UK-derived network figures.
Notes
PDF downloaded direct from gov.uk (assets.publishing.service.gov.uk), DECC URN 15D/022, © Crown copyright 2015. Figures grep-confirmed via pdftotext (£1000/m, £422–£1,472; HIU £1,075; connection £579; “HIUs and heat meters … dominate”). data_quality high (UK-government primary); NZ-applicability interim (UK data, 2015 prices, indicative NZD).
Connections
Links to
Technologies (1): Biomass District Heating (Wood Chip)
Referenced by
Technologies (1): Biomass District Heating (Wood Chip)
EDT domains (1): D01: Renewable Energy & Storage Systems