SSE pumps £15m into geothermal specialist

Energy giant Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE) yesterday announced it is to invest £15m in Geothermal International in return for a 20 per cent stake in the company.

Brian Davidson, chief executive of Geothermal International, said the deal represented a "vote of confidence" in the company's ground source heating and cooling systems.

Ground source heat pump systems extract heat stored in the ground and use it to heat the air within a building. The same technology can also be harnessed to provide hot water or even drive cooling systems.

Despite a proven track record in Canada, Germany and Sweden, the technology is relatively new to the UK. However, Patrick Sherriff, marketing and sales director for Geothermal International, insisted sales of the technology are now doubling year-on-year, albeit from a low base.

"It's four times as effective as oil and gas boilers and six times as efficient as air conditioning," he said, adding that the technology can halve carbon emissions and save up to 70 per cent of an annual heating or cooling bill.

Sherriff said the new partnership with SSE will help the company offer geothermal solutions to larger customers, such as developers and local authorities.

Current Geothermal International projects comprise installations for Unilever, DHL, B&Q and the public sector, including Europe’s largest geothermal system destined for the NHS hospital in Mansfield.

Ian Marchant, chief executive of SSE, said the deal, which is expected to be completed within six months, meant that the company’s renewables portfolio would reach almost every part of the UK's alternative energy market.

"Geothermal energy has been an obvious missing piece in this portfolio and this deal fills the gap very effectively," he added.