Radisson Blu, Letterkenny halves its heating bill
The Radisson Blu Hotel in Letterkenny, Co. Donegal, switched from using oil to heat the hotel to a biomass boiler, with support from SEAI.
About the Project
The newly refurbished Radisson Blu Hotel, Letterkenny is a superior 4-star hotel and features 114 bedrooms hotel, full conference and banquet facilities, as well as a leisure centre with a 17m swimming pool. The hotel is conveniently located in the heart of Letterkenny town, within short walking distance of shopping areas, cinema, theatre, bars and restaurants.
Paul Byrne, the Managing Director of the hotel, made the decision a few years ago to switch from using oil to a biomass boiler as the hotels main heating source.
Hotels are big energy users of energy so the bills for heating are very high and one of the biggest costs to any hotel. Paul saw the Support Scheme for Renewable Heat as an opportunity for his hotel to reduce their bills and cut back significantly on their carbon emissions. "We've always had a a focus on sustainability".
We've always had a focus on sustainability and reducing the carbon output of our hotel. The Support Scheme for Renewable Heat enabled us to make the switch to a renewable energy source and recoup the investment that is needed to make that change in a very short space of time.
Results
Based on 2019 figures, the cost of heating for the hotel reduced by approximately 50% and based on 2022 figures, considering that no oil has subsequently been purchased for the hotel, the saving has reached approximately 70%. This is with the payments from SSRH taken into account.
The investment and effort that is required is worthwhile. The benefits kick into your bottom line almost instantly and to be able to reduce our energy costs is vital for us in staying competitive.
The SSRH Process
The Support Scheme for Renewable Heat (SSRH) is a government funded initiative designed to increase the energy generated from renewable sources in the heat sector. The scheme is open to commercial, industrial, agricultural, district heating, public sector, and other non-domestic heat users.
The Scheme aims to:
- Bridge the gap between the installation and operating costs of renewable heating systems and the conventional fossil fuel alternatives; and
- Incentivise the development and supply of renewable heat
The Scheme will support:
- An installation grant
- On-going operational support / the tariff.