Competition: Breakthrough 5: Catalyst
Amount awarded: £973,034
Led by: Anglian Water
Partners: BMA, Noventa Energy, University of Sheffield, Exeter University, Thames Water, Irish Water, Peterborough City Council, Severn Trent Water
Project completion date: December 2026
Water cycle tag: Waste Water Network
TORCH provides an AI-assisted decision tool to optimise heat energy recovery from sewers and Water recycling centres by identifying and prioritizing heat source location, heat energy recovery technology and transmission route to enable lower cost heat energy, a reduction in carbon, and to maintain performance of sewer assets.
“Generating heat in the UK often depends on expensive fossil fuels which are bad for the environment. TORCH is an exciting project that tackles these challenges head on through capturing a currently untapped resource within sewers, to the benefit of the environment and consumers of heat.”
David Riley, Head of Carbon Neutrality, Anglian Water
Image caption: AI-assisted decision tool to optimise heat energy recovery from sewers and water recycling centres
