Power Generation in the Middle of Cities

Introduction

I was walking through Islington in Central London the other day, and the last thing I expected to stumble upon was a power station, albeit a small one.

Bunhill Energy Centre

It is located at Bunhill Energy Centre, and consists of a combined heat and power plant running off gas. Any electricity generated is fed into the grid, and the heat produced is used to warm surrounding buildings. Usually the heat generated by a power station is wasted, but in this case they were able to create a radically more environmentally friendly solution.

Other examples

Combined heat and power is not a new concept. There are other locations in London which also use it (for example Imperial College), but they are usually hidden away in basements. Bunhill Energy Center is visible to people walking past, so also serves an educational purpose by teaching people about greener energy production.

Conclusions

Schemes like this are ways to make cities much more energy efficient than living in less dense areas. The next power station that gets built might literally be on your doorstep.