DECISION

1.    Authorise the Corporate Director of Housing and Regeneration in consultation with the Mayor to enter into a 2-year transitional period to extend the existing agreement under appropriate commercial terms.

2.    Note a detailed decarbonisation and expansion strategy will be developed.

3.    Note a future report will be brought to Cabinet for approval to reprocure a new long-term contract from 2027.

Action by

CORPORATE DIRECTOR OF HOUSING AND REGENERATION (P. PATTERSON)

Head of Sustainability (A. Khan).

Councillor Shafi Ahmed, Cabinet Member for Environment and the Climate Emergency introduced the report that sought to enable the continued provision of heat to the existing customers of The Barkantine Heat and Power Company (BHPC): a district heating energy centre located behind Tiller Leisure Centre, and managed by a subsidiary company of EDF energy. Councillor Ahmed explained the unique status of the scheme which is the only district heating PFI scheme in the country and how, once the PFI agreement expires the energy centre, plant, assets and network was expected to be handed back to the Council, requiring measures to be put in place to manage the network and new contracts renegotiated.

The Mayor and Cabinet welcomed the report though asked officers to check the names and titles in the governance section of the report were up to date.

RESOLVED that the Mayor in Cabinet:

1.    Authorises the Corporate Director of Housing and Regeneration in consultation with the Mayor to enter into a 2-year transitional period to extend the existing agreement under appropriate commercial terms.

2.    Notes a detailed decarbonisation and expansion strategy will be developed.

3.    Notes a future report will be brought to Cabinet for approval to reprocure a new long-term contract from 2027.