Castle Howard village moves closer to geothermal system ambition

The grant has been awarded alongside match-funding by Third Energy, the firm which drew intense controversy over its hydraulic fracturing plans at nearby Kirby Misperton before changing its focus to renewable energy by re-purposing its gas wells, and Castle Howard Estate Limited. The feasibility assessment follows a high-level study commissioned a year ago which concluded a geothermal system could provide the 40 dwellings at Coneysthorpe with all their heat demands, reduce future heating costs and reduce specific carbon emissions by at least 80 per cent.

Based on a two well, medium depth system, the detailed study at Coneysthorpe will look at the connection costs per residential property, the precise location of the wells, the pipeline network route, planning considerations, the governance and ownership structure of the network and the financing of future development of the network. It will also include community outreach, including letterbox drops and public meetings to ensure that all residents are engaged and involved in project development.

The initial report was commissioned following a visit by the owner, Nicholas Howard and Castle Howard Estate chief executive Jasper Hasell, to a geothermal demonstrator site near Kirby Misperton.

Mr Hasell said: “We look forward to continuing the work on decarbonising Coneysthorpe using innovative geothermal technology. We have always been at the forefront of such sustainable concepts with a lake-source heating system already in use on the estate. Leveraging the existing deep geothermal progress in North Yorkshire is a natural extension to our sustainability efforts.”

The demonstrator project, operated by CeraPhi Energy and Third Energy, has successfully repurposed a redundant gas well in the area for geothermal heat use and, due to its favourable geology, is putting North Yorkshire at the forefront of low-temperature geothermal heat networks in the UK. CeraPhi is using its patented technology, a closed-loop downhole heat exchanger, to draw up subsurface heat for various applications, including direct heat for agriculture, residential heating and cooling, and downhole green hydrogen production.

The foundation hopes the Coneysthorpe project will add to these efforts by proving the advantages of such systems for rural, often listed, oil-based residential properties for which other routes to net zero are challenging.

The Rural Services Network highlights how the many villages like Coneysthorpe are critical to the UK's clean energy transition and boast vast natural resources suitable for green energy projects, while also facing distinct challenges, such as inadequate energy infrastructure and higher energy costs. For instance, the average annual energy cost for a home in predominantly rural areas was £815 in 2021, 13 per cent higher than in urban areas.

In the Coneysthorpe scheme, local efforts are being bolstered by North Yorkshire’s subterranean salt layer which can boost available deep-source heat, providing a “hot spot” compared to the rest of the UK.

The project follows the Castle Howard Estate harnessing heat from the ground, installing a lake source heat pump over two decades agom which now provides heats the stately home all year round. The decarbonising Coneyshtorpe scheme is set to complement similar efforts in the nearby village of Slingsby, where initial feasibility on geothermal heat solutions to support the village school, church, hall and sports facilities is nearing completion and funding for the next phase of feasibility studies is now being sought.

Russell Hoare, of Third Energy, said: “We have various projects within the region looking at repurposing of existing gas wells for geothermal use, but the opportunity to work with Castle Howard and the residents of Coneysthorpe to decarbonise rural heat systems using new wells is an exciting extension to our work that could have profound effects on the roadmap to net zero for North Yorkshire and the UK.”

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