installation of a new renewable water source heat pump (utilising heat recovered from river water) at Barnard's Yard, Norwich

Research by the council into ground source heat pump frameworks identified a route available to the council via a specialist Fusion 21 framework. Expressions of interest via the Fusion 21 framework resulted in one supplier being the only framework supplier interested in a trial core drilling element and the overall project. After trial core drilling at the site took place in June 2020, investigations took place to determine if a water source heat pump system utilising water from the adjacent River Wensum as opposed to boreholes was viable. The data showed the River Wensum is ideal for this and subsequently the supplier worked with their specialists and the Environment Agency (EA) to develop and design a suitable scheme. The contract award was finally approved at Cabinet on 13 October 2021 but was not officially formalised until 22 November 2021 as due to the specialism of the project and the sensitivity, a number of logistical issues had to be completed before the the contract could be officially authorised. Work on site is due to start 01 December 2021 for a period of 6 months.