New Midlothian facility opens to support growth of district heating
17 November 2025
Scotland’s first dedicated district heating education centre has been established at the Energy Training Academy (ETA) in Edinburgh.
The Heat Network Suite, located inside the Energy Training Academy (ETA) in Dalkeith, has been set up as a dedicated area for conferences, demonstrations and training sessions. It completes the academy’s expansion nearly three years after it began offering courses in gas and renewable technologies.
In conjunction with primary sponsors Vattenfall Heat UK (part of Swedish energy company Vattenfall AB), London-based integrated facilities management specialists OCS and heat network experts SAV Systems, the suite focuses on district heating networks throughout Scotland. Given the proximity to the academy of Shawfair, Midlothian’s newest town with more than 3,000 homes and one million square feet of commercial space on the south-east side of Edinburgh, this is one area which is set to benefit immediately.
Midlothian Energy Ltd (MEL), a joint venture between Midlothian Council and Vattenfall Heat UK, is installing a District Heating Network to Shawfair, bringing low carbon heat to the area. MEL is delivering the heating, saving over 2,500 tonnes of CO2 per year, the equivalent of taking 1,200 cars off the road.
Heat that would otherwise be wasted will be captured by Midlothian Energy Ltd from Millerhill Recycling and Energy Recovery Centre (RERC), then transported via a network of underground pipes to provide a low-carbon source of heating and hot water for properties.
Welcoming the launch of the Heat Network Suite, academy co-founder Andrew Lamond says:
“The space is designed to bring people together and accelerate the uptake of District Heating Networks across Scotland. We want to host events and workshops that bring local authorities together with academics, contractors and manufacturers.
“Heat Networks isn’t a new technology in Scotland, but a lot of people don’t know much (if anything) about them. This space within the academy is designed to educate policy makers, home owners, town planners and the key stakeholders on the benefits and opportunities within district heating.
“We will be engaging with local authorities, various stakeholders from town planners to school pupils, homeowners and tenants to help them learn how this all works. The suite will be a flexible space allowing us to have product launches, business networking events and employability events for schools – really enhancing our community offering.”
Other key sponsors involved in the project are: PPS District Heating (Bolton), Therma Mech (Bristol), Elevate Everywhere (London), CPC Civils (Solihull), ISOPLUS (Lincolnshire) and R3 (Wallyford).
