Hardwick Meatworks Heat Pump Installation and Power Upgrade Demonstration
- $838k Funded by ARENA
- $2.57m Total project cost
Summary
Hardwick Processors will install a 1 MW (thermal) high lift heat pump at the Hardwick Meat Works meat processing plant in Kyneton, Victoria.
Need
Low temperature (~80°C) industrial process heat (i.e. hot water) applications are among the most accessible to supply with renewable energy. Heat pumps operate in this range and can be powered with renewable electricity. However, significant barriers exist to uptake, including:
- the need (in some cases) for increased electrical supply capacity
- low awareness and capability among technical service providers
- high capital cost of equipment compared with incumbent gas-fired boilers
- a need to operate at high capacity factors, often using thermal storage, to achieve an acceptable economic return.
This project aims to address these barriers and reduce the perceived risk of using renewable energy in this way.
Learn more
Report: Heat Pump Project Interim Report
The project has now installed and commissioned the heat pump at the meat processing facility. The installation involved a high voltage upgrade and integration with the site’s solar and battery storage system. This interim knowledge sharing report will be updated over the next 24 months.
Report: Hardwicks Meatworks Lessons Learnt 2
This second Lessons Learnt report covers additional works beyond the intended scope including equipment installation and conversion to high voltage supply plus operational testing.
Report: Hardwicks Meatworks Lessons Learnt 1
This first Lessons Learnt report outlines the challenges faced while designing and building a heat pump energy storage unit that minimises waste and incorporates previously wasted energy and heat. The team aim to deliver hot water at 75°C to satisfy much of the heat demands for an 82°C hot water circuit.
Media Release: Decarbonising the Meat Industry Using Heat Pump Technology
ARENA announced funding to Hardwick Processors to install a 1 MW (thermal) demonstration scale heat pump and upgrade the electrical supply system at its meat processing plant in Kyneton, Victoria.
Action
The project will demonstrate heat pump technology powered by renewable energy to manage industrial process heat demand. The heat pump will deliver hot water at a planned 75°C to satisfy the majority of the heat demand for the 82°C hot water circuit. The heat pump installation will use existing on-site renewable energy supply infrastructure of 2.5 MW solar PV and a 2 MWh battery energy storage system. The project will make use of existing thermal energy storage in the form of approximately 150,000 litre hot water storage tanks. The project will also upgrade the Hardwick Meatworks electrical supply system.
Outcome
The heat pump will displace around 33,000 GJ p.a. of natural gas which represents more than 75% of the current gas consumption at Hardwick Meat Works.
ARENAWIRE Blogs
Heat pump hot water system trial to slash energy bills
In rural Victoria, a heat pump hot water system trial and revamped power supply could see a company cut its energy and utility costs by more than $500,000 per year.
