Keele University set for £27m Smart Energy project

THE Government is to invest £5m into creating the UK’s first Smart Energy Demonstrator site at Keele University in Staffordshire – the only project of its kind for any UK university.

The £27m project, part of the Stoke & Staffordshire Local Enterprise Partnership City Deal initiative, aims to deliver a nationally significant, world class Smart Energy Network on the Keele campus.

The project is expected to provide 170 jobs over the implementation period alone.

The Smart Energy Network will provide Keele with a physical demonstrator for smart energy research and development, enabling the ‘real’ evaluation of new and evolving energy technologies. It will provide the opportunity to assess their efficiencies, both individually and combined, in terms of energy reduction, cost and CO2 emissions, through ‘scenario modelling’.

The primary role of the Keele Smart Energy Network will be to demonstrate the opportunities that are available and to encourage the national deployment of Smart Energy Grids, supported by a location specific mix of energy technologies and solutions.

As the national lead for the ground-breaking work, the long term benefits of the project are expected to include new high tech jobs for the energy sector, greater inward investment and recognition of the area as a major technological centre.

Phil Butters, Director of Estates and Development at Keele, said: “While it is a national and international research and demonstrator facility, the project demonstrates the benefits of collaboration, being led by the Keele Estates Team working with world leading research teams at the University in the areas of clean energy and sustainability.”

Professor Nick Foskett, the Vice-Chancellor of Keele University, added: “This will not only secure Keele’s place at the forefront of teaching and research in sustainability and green technology but will enable us to make  a major impact through practical application not only locally but also in the wider community.”

Teams at Keele, will be able to provide expert advice and support to a range of users – estate managers, innovators, manufacturers, installers, planners, developers, and energy suppliers.

The facility will be open to a wide range of bodies, including: higher education, the NHS, developers and central and local government.