Geographical Magazine
Heat from beneath: how the UK could heat homes from old coal mines
Written by
Catherine Early
This chimney in Abersychan, Pontypool, South Wales, is the last remaining sign of the coal mine that once operated here. Such sites can play host to reserves of warm water below
SHUTTERSTOCK/ steved_np3
06 May
2021
The UK has made little progress decarbonising heating, but a significant source lies freely available under the feet of a quarter of the population
On an industrial park outside Gateshead, a pioneering technology is extracting energy from Britain’s past and using it in a way that could herald its low-carbon future. Not content with generating electricity from wind turbines and solar panels for its factory, contract wine-bottling company Greencroft Bottling wanted a low-carbon method to heat its two warehouses that store 20 million bottles. While searching for the right technology, company director Adam Black realised that the warehouses were situated above a huge source of heat – a former coalfield whose disused mines were flooded with water naturally heated by geothermal processes to around 17°C.