Day 1 - All Sessions in NORTHSIDE BALLROOM
10:00 am
NYSERDA's Large-Scale Thermal Program
In this session, attendees will learn about NYSERDA's Large-Scale Thermal Program, including funding support available for large-scale thermal projects and market development activities. The session panelists will provide project site owner/manager experiences and perspectives on developing large-scale thermal systems on campuses and in large buildings, including project examples, factors that affect large-scale thermal project development, and how it fits into energy and decarbonization planning for site owners.
Moderator: Sue Dougherty / NYSERDA
Panel:
- Michael Rohan / Northwell Health
- Scott DeHollander / Cornell AgriTech
11:30 am
Eversource's Networked Geothermal Pilot: Lessons Learned
The route is a neighborhood in Framingham consisting of 36 buildings – 24 residential and five commercial – for a total of 125 customer accounts. Three main components of the system have been installed in parallel, drilling the geothermal borefields, installing the utility mains and service lines connecting customers' buildings and the conversion to geothermal heat pumps in each building.
Speakers:
- Eric Bosworth / Eversource
- Joel Rayberg / Eversource
1:30 pm
Creating the Market for Networked Heat Pumps in Europe
Kensa Group have been the UK’s leading manufacturer of ground source heat pumps (GSHP’s) for over 20 years. Kensa are also the UK leaders in bore hole design (needed to provide the ambient temperature to the heat pump). Kensa pioneered the concept of linking multiple boreholes together to form a ‘ground source heat network’ (or ‘geothermal heat network’), which enables large scale rollout – with all boreholes being put in in one go for a housing development, a street or even a town. These networks deliver massive economies of scale, with mobilisation costs spread over all homes taking advantage of ‘diversity factors’.
Celsius Energy, based in France, is packaging a solution to install ground heat exchangers for dense urban areas, addressing apartment complexes and campuses to mixed development zones. Celsius uses angled borehole drilling to minimize the surface disruption, while maximizing the thermal energy transfer. The company applied this design and installation strategy to the primary bore field for Eversource Energy's Networked Geothermal Pilot in Framingham, MA.
Moderator:
- Zeyneb Magavi / HEET (US)
Speakers:
- Tamsin Lishman / Kensa Group (UK)
- Cindy Demichel / Celsius Energy (FR)
2:45 pm
Thermal Energy Networks Across the Country
Natural Gas utilities across the country are engaged in investigating TENs as a potential alternative to their current natural gas networks. Currently, seven states (Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York, Colorado, Washington, Maryland, and Vermont) have legislation that either allows or mandates utilities to develop thermal energy network demonstration projects or pilots. The Department of Energy is funding 11 studies of TENs in different states. This panel will review current TENs activity and we'll hear from some of the people engaged in these initiatives.
Moderator:
- Will Lange / WaterFurnace International
Panel:
- Ania Camargo / Building Decarbonization Coalition
- Holly Braun / NW Natural
- David Podorson / Xcel Energy
- David Wang / Department of Energy
4:00 pm
Building the Regulatory Standard for Thermal Energy Networks
All the Utility Thermal Energy Network pilot activity we see unfolding will require a regulatory framework to support this emerging thermal utility. Some regulations can be borrowed and/or repackaged from more mature utilities, such as water, natural gas and electric distribution. The performance metrics from the planned pilots projects will also help inform future regulations. This panel discusses the process to arrive at a regulatory framework and how it's being approached in the states engaged in utility thermal energy network pilots.
Moderator:
- Laurie Kokkinides / NYS Department of Public Service
Panel:
- Zeyneb Magavi / HEET
- William Akley / Eversource (Retired)
- Alex Buell / Con Edison
- Cole Burgess / NYSEG • RG&E
Session YouTube Recording:
Presentation Deck: Building the Regulatory Standard for Thermal Energy Networks