Hot granite rocks beneath Cornwall will, for the first time, be used to supply clean energy for local homes and facilities, allowing them to ditch costly fossil fuels for more stable bills. The ground-breaking project, run by Cornwall Council, will provide power and heat for 3800 homes in the village - as well as the Royal Cornwall Hospital, local schools and a leisure centre.

Langarth Heat District Network is one of seven projects across England to be awarded a total of £91 million from the UK government, in its biggest drive yet to fund cleaner ways to heat and power buildings. The move is expected to boost the UK's energy security and independence while delivering on the government's commitment to grow the economy - with the Langarth scheme expected to create 100 new, skilled jobs locally.

Cornwall's new heat network is set to be ready by 2026

The funding forms part of a £288 million government package that will roll out new heat networks across the country and provide a cut to carbon emissions equivalent to taking 5.6 million cars off the road for a year. Cornwall's new heat network is set to be ready by 2026, drilling to a depth of 5275m to extract heat from the granite beneath the United Downs Industrial Site.

Councillor David Harris, Cornwall Council Portfolio Holder for Resources, said: "The Green Heat Network Fund award will contribute to the success of Langarth Garden Village and Cornwall Council's mission to work with communities for a carbon-neutral Cornwall, where everyone can start well, live well and age well.

"This heat network will be a concrete example to others around the UK of how local and national government working together with the private sector can make a real difference to people's lives."

The government funding will pave the way for low-carbon technologies - like heat pumps, solar and geothermal energy - to be delivered at scale and established as a central source of energy in this country. The Green Heat Network Fund (GHNF) opened in March 2022 to public, private and third-sector applicants in England and is anticipated to run until 2025. It replaced the Heat Networks Investment Project (HNIP) scheme, which closed for applications in January 2022.

In contrast to the HNIP scheme, the GHNF scheme will only fund heat network projects where there is a low-carbon heat source.

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