HVO – Cleaner, Greener, Sustainable & Affordable Heating solutions
A West Cork Primary School has become the first school in Ireland, to heat its buildings with Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO). A transformational, renewable fuel, HVO can reduce carbon emissions by almost 90%.
St. Enda’s National School in Kilnadur, Dunmanway, recently made the switch from traditional Heating Oil to HVO, as part of a series of initiatives by the school, to reduce its carbon footprint. Derived from used cooking oil, HVO is certified as a sustainable fuel choice, by the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) organisation.
Proven to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 88%, HVO is an ideal low-carbon fuel choice, for existing oil-fired heating installations, and older buildings. This was an especially important consideration at St. Enda’s, since the original school building dates from 1865. Unlike alternative low-carbon technologies, such as heat pumps, switching existing oil-fired systems to HVO, is significantly less disruptive, and much less expensive.
St. Enda’s Principal Mr. Liam Cotter says, “With four Green Flags for Litter and Waste, Energy, Water and Travel, we believe in practising sustainability, as well as teaching it. So, we’re delighted to be the first school in Ireland to make the switch from Heating Oil to HVO, and in so doing, highlighting to our pupils, the importance of making sensible, sustainable, and environmentally responsible choices.”
Tank and Boiler Technician Concubhar McCarthy of CMcC Services in Dunmanway who managed and completed all the works initially advised of the fuel alternative HVO. Concubhar McCarthy says
“This is a great example on a 158 year old building to show and inform people with properties with a poor BER rating that there is a cost effective, environmentally friendly alternative which is readily available , it’s here, it’s now and it’s called HVO”
The new system includes a high-efficiency HVO Boiler manufactured by Firebird in Baile Mhic Íre, together with an environmentally-preferred Bunded HVO Fuel Storage Tank, manufactured by Carbery Plastics, in nearby Clonakilty
Local Fuel Distributor Tria are pioneering the distribution of HVO in West Cork and throughout Ireland emphasizing how HVO can be a major player in Irelands decarbonization.
Carbery Plastics’ Cal McCarthy says, “The liquid fuel industry is at the forefront of transforming how we heat premises nationwide. HVO is a low-carbon, high-efficiency fuel, which is available today and suitable for oil-fired appliances, with only minor modifications necessary”
HVO has the potential to play a pivotal role in helping us transition, to cleaner, greener, sustainable and affordable heating solutions.
Futher Info
Around 1million, schools homes and businesses premises in the Ireland currently rely on liquid fuel heating. However, to tackle the problem of climate change – the biggest challenge the world has ever faced – the fuels we use to heat our buildings must change. It is vital that this is done in a way that is fair to consumers and minimises cost and disruption, which are major barriers to progress. Detailed points of consideration and instruction that are required to convert homes from using the fossil fuels in use today to a new low carbon renewable liquid fuel alternative called Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (sometimes referred to as Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil or HVO) are readily available. Industry is committed to introducing this new fuel which, with government support, could make a major contribution to meeting the government’s net carbon zero target.