First offices in Liverpool Waters become connected to new Mersey Heat Network

Businesses based within No. 8, No. 10, and No. 12 Princes Dock, within Peel Waters’ growing Liverpool Waters district, have become the first commercial office buildings in Liverpool to connect their heating and hot water supply to the multi-million-pound Mersey Heat network and Energy Centre.

These three Net Zero in operation office buildings at Princes Dock which are part of Liverpool Waters are now benefitting from locally generated heat from the Energy Centre, which is home to one of the UK’s largest water source heat pumps and due for completion later this year.

Prior to the completion of the Energy Centre, the heat for the offices will come from back-up gas powered boilers housed within the centre. Once complete, heat will be delivered through water source heat pumps taking water from the nearby Leeds/Liverpool Canal. Eventually a 6km district heating network will heat thousands of homes and businesses across Liverpool, reducing energy costs and their carbon footprint.

The Mersey Heat network is set to become a major part of Liverpool’s low carbon energy infrastructure. The new Mersey Heat Energy Centre, off Great Howard Street, was designed and built by renewable energy company, Vital Energi, and led by Peel’s district heat network specialist, Ener-Vate.

The Mersey Heat network will reduce Liverpool’s reliance on fossil fuels and save 2,000 tonnes of carbon emissions every year – the equivalent of taking 1,000 cars off the roads. The infrastructure will provide low carbon heat and hot water to thousands of homes and commercial space within Liverpool Waters as well as sustainably futureproofing developments planned for the growing mixed-use district, as well as wider domestic and commercial buildings across Liverpool.

The current phase of the project will supply circa 10GWh of heat every year with planning permission in place to expand the project to supply around 45GWh (the equivalent of supplying 17,000 new homes with heating and hot water).

In September, Minister for Energy Consumers, Miatta Fahnbulleh MP, became the first minister from the new government to visit Liverpool’s Mersey Heat Network Energy Centre.

Liza Marco, Senior Asset Manager at Liverpool Waters, said:

“We are very proud to have connected the first commercial office buildings in Liverpool to this innovative new heating network. Sustainability and climate resilience are a huge priority for our ambitious tenants at Princes Dock, and we are excited to be connected and ready to go for when the Energy Centre is fully switched on in the coming months.”

Mersey Heat and Peel Waters March 2025 - Liverpool Waters

David Tatton, Investment Director, Peel NRE commented:

“The connection of the network to No’s 8, 10 and 12 Princes Dock is huge milestone for the Mersey Heat project. The Energy centre is now live and will soon be providing low carbon heat and hot water to over 100,000 sq ft of the best Grade A office space in Liverpool. Early adopters like Peel Waters will help drive demand for heat networks across the city, and we hope to be connecting more offices in the years to come.”

Jo Longdon, Director of Strategy, Ener-Vate, commented:

“Heat Networks are crucial for decarbonising cities like Liverpool and Mersey Heat is set to play a central role, delivering heat and hot water across both residential and commercial properties. This connection to some of the city’s most sought after commercial space is a real achievement for everyone involved.”

Liverpool Waters is part of Peel Waters, a UK wide portfolio of vibrant and innovative, waterfront developments, delivering large-scale, sustainable regeneration projects, creating jobs, economic growth, new homes and new public realm across the country.