Veolia unveils £1bn project pipeline as it targets expansion in UK district heating

1 December 2025

A £1bn programme of district heating projects is being lined up for delivery in the UK by 2030, as Veolia launches its Ecothermal Grid offering to support low-carbon networks.

The pipeline includes £210m worth of schemes already scheduled for 2025, with developments expected across London, Wiltshire, Bristol, Yorkshire and Cambridgeshire. In London, phase one of the Southwark 2.0 heat network has recently been completed, providing more than 2,500 homes with heat recovered from an energy-from-waste facility. Phase two is due to follow in 2026, subject to regulatory approval, with capacity expected to rise to nearly 7,000 homes once the full extension is in place.

Another project is being developed at the Wellcome Genome Campus in Cambridgeshire, where Veolia has been chosen as preferred partner to design a fifth-generation system using geothermal sources and waste heat from a data-centre. The campus is undergoing a long-term expansion to house additional research and data-science facilities.

District heating currently supplies only a small share of heat used in UK buildings, although government plans set a target for networks to meet around one fifth of demand by 2050. Heating remains a major contributor to national emissions, and industry estimates suggest the potential value of the future market could reach about £80bn.

Veolia is urging ministers to introduce policy measures it believes would improve confidence and encourage further investment. Among the changes it is seeking are incentives through the UK Emissions Trading Scheme for heat supplied from energy-from-waste plants, a long-term funding model to follow the existing Green Heat Network Fund, and mandatory use of available waste heat in new or certain existing buildings.

Estelle Brachlianoff, chief executive officer of Veolia, comments:

“Veolia’s ambition is to be at the forefront of a new wave of heating networks across Europe, and ultimately to become the number one player in urban heating in Europe. In so doing, we will deliver a direct route to carbon-neutral heating and cooling, using a diverse range of energy sources and integrating AI-driven smart controls and energy storage technologies to create the most reliable and flexible networks. We need – across Europe and in the UK – funding mechanisms that provide certainty, and stable regulatory frameworks.”