Electric planes, boats and 'swimming pools' - how the West Country is leading the way on green tech!
It seems the region is at the forefront of innovation!
Last updated 24th Mar 2023
From trials of electric planes and boats, to heating swimming pools using computers, the West country is punching above its weight when it comes to developments in green tech.
Greatest Hits Radio has learnt a now finished trial of electric flights between Exeter and Newquay airports has resulted in a number of expressions of interest from commercial route operators - with 'commercially sensitive' negotiations continuing towards a long-term plan of creating a 'Future Aviation Test Zone' at Exeter to support electronic flights.
Coastal Workboats Limited this week confirmed it plans to relocate from Exeter to Honiton as it works to develop the UK’s first fully electric workboat and charging station - in a move which will secure 30 local jobs.
This month Exmouth Leisure centre became the first in the UK to save £30,000 a year on energy bills by allowing a tech start up firm to base its computers there - which means the heat they generate can help warm the council-owned swimming pool.
What is the latest with electronic flights?
Between 2021 and 2022 Ampaire, a pioneer in hybrid electric aircraft technology, flew five return flights from Exeter to Newquay airports which are 85 miles apart - along with 15 other shorter trials - of its six-seat Cessna 337 Skymaster which features a battery-powered electric motor at the front and conventional combustion engine at the rear, enabling a reduction in emissions and operating costs by as much as 30%.
Ampaire Ltd heads a UK-based consortium created to explore 'regional electric aviation transport solutions'. It received £2.4 million from the UK Research and Innovation’s £30 million Future Flight Challenge towards the consortium’s £5 million 2ZERO programme to 'study the ecosystem required to enable the future of electric aircraft within existing airport and airline operations'.
The firm is currently developing hybrid electric power train upgrades for 9- to 19-seat regional aircraft - including the Cessna Grand Caravan and Twin Otter. Trials of the 'eco caravan' could begin in the US at the end of next year, and it's hoped the UK and other parts of Europe will follow suit afterwards.
Greatest Hits Radio understands the industry is still a long way off from 'giant jumbos' being run purely on electric because of the weights of the batteries involved. Ampaire is looking at 'in-flight' charging possibilities to allow electric flights to be used before large-scale and expensive airport-based facilities are installed - which they describe as 'egg before chicken'. It is currently focussing on hybrid technology to help speed up the use and adoption of electric flight technology.
It comes as Exeter Airport hopes to eventually become a 'Future Aviation Test Zone' which could pave the way for more UK electric-powered flights. When contacted the heart of the south west local enterprise partnership said discussions were 'commercially sensitive' and would not be willing to discuss why they are pursuing the idea. The Government is currently looking at whether LEPs could be placed back into council control and it is unclear what that would mean for the FATZ zone.
What is happening with electronic boats?
Coastal Workboats Limited (CWL) will be building their new HQ and advanced manufacturing site at Honiton’s Heathpark Industrial Estate which will open next year. The building will use solar and ground source heating and boast facilities to charge electric vehicles.
The investment has been backed by £6 million from the government’s Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition fund. The scheme is designed to help maritime industries eliminate carbon emissions and increase efficiency. Electric boats already exist, but so far they have only been used for leisure. CWL’s project will be the first to demonstrate their commercial potential.
CWL’s successful funding application will support a £9million project which will deliver the UK’s first demonstration of a fully-electric workboat and charging station. The purpose-built Electric Landing Utility Vessel (E-LUV) will be demonstrated for four weeks in the Shetland Isles in a workboat capacity, running inter-island routes. Most workboats are operated in areas with low or low grid power to support the recharging of vessels.
Why is a West Country leisure centre leading the way on green tech?
Deep Green, a British start-up, has unveiled Exmouth Swimming Pool as one of the first sites for a technology that supplies free heat - which reduces energy bills and will cut the reliance on carbon-intensive fossil fuel boilers.
Exmouth is the first site in the country to benefit from heat-recapture by cloud data centres. The surplus heat donated to the leisure centre by Deep Green’s unit will reduce the pool’s gas requirements by 62%, saving LED Community Leisure, who manage the centre on behalf of East Devon District Council (EDDC), over £30,000 a year and reduce carbon emissions by 25.8 tonnes.
Using the latest ‘immersion cooling’ technology, Deep Green captures heat from the operating data centre servers, transferring it into the site’s existing hot water system, for free. Around 96% of the heat generated by a Deep Green ‘digital boiler’ is recycled. The installation in Exmouth Leisure Centre contains 12 servers of the highest-grade computer equipment. There are over 1,500 pools in England alone that could all benefit. Energy costs for leisure facilities have increased 150% since 2019 and an estimated 79% face closure