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Rivers Thames Is Used To Heat Homes

A revolutionary, eco-friendly energy system could cut bills for millions of customers.

The River Thames is providing hot water and heating for homes and a hotel in southwest London in the first project of its kind in the UK.

The temperature of water three metres below the surface of the Thames remains constant - at around 7C to 10C - even in the coldest months.

That water is pumped into a plant room and low grade heat is transferred, using a heat pump system, to a refrigerant gas.

A compressor increases the pressure which, in turn, raises the temperature up to 45 degrees.

The energy is then used by nearby flats and a hotel in Kingston upon Thames.

The technology is the inverse of that used to cool refrigerators. A similar system already exists in Japan.

Only a minimal amount of electricity is needed to power the plant room and developers say water source energy could provide an alternative to the rising price of electricity - which has increased by almost 40% since 2010.

"We want to deal with the aspects of climate change, which means reducing carbon emissions," says Mike Spenser-Morris, the man behind the Kingston project.

"What we've done here is to get rid of all the burning that produces carbon emissions. We're not burning gas, we're not burning wood.

"As a result of that there is zero carbon emissions on this site."

Developers say the heat pump system could reduce bills by up to 20%.

The scheme has the backing of Energy Secretary Ed Davey, who says he is working to end legal bureaucracy hampering its progress.

He told Sky News: "One of the problems is when you have a new technology the old ways of doing things don't catch up to it.

"My job is to really fast track some of these technologies and get rid of the old obstacles - and that's what we are going to do ."