Europe Hospitals operates from two sites in the heart of Brussels: St-Elisabeth (Uccle) and St-Michiel (Etterbeek). In this urban context, the hospital strives for measurable results to check off its sustainability objectives. Accordingly, achieving ISO 14001 certification is also on its roadmap.
Bruno Le Fevere, Europe Hospitals’ Technical explains:
“The Energy Reduction Plan is our guideline to structurally save energy costs and CO₂.”
Bruno Le Fevere
We started by listing all energy-saving measures and projects. The business case should always be environmentally and financially sound, so we quantified their impact in terms of euros and CO₂ savings. We have catalogued the measures in payback times of up to 5 years and from 5 to 10 years. Following the Pareto principle, we start with the most impactful projects having the shortest payback time. We are pursuing a carefully crafted energy strategy to address short- and long-term goals.
We have successfully implemented the initial phases of our plan, incorporating solar panels and installing Combined Heat and Power units (CHPs). Everything gained momentum when a budget was made available from the Community Commission for Brussels Hospitals. Our long-term plan was already taking shape, allowing us to submit projects quickly.
“AYA is putting its shoulder to the wheel to take this energy reduction plan further and is also working on our flexibility project.”
Flexibility project creates a significant revenue stream
We are in the process of reconverting our emergency generators, including stabilising the Belgian grid. We aspire for these advanced motors to generate a substantial revenue stream for our hospital, securing the most favourable deal for us.
Our AYA Energy Manager, Emilie, has listed the deployable assets for the flexibility market to organise the market consultation. Additional assets, such as our CHPs and chillers, are also part of the inventory assessment. We discover multiple possibilities beyond our initial thought. Regarding flexibility, we aim to align our energy consumption with market benefits. In het kader van flexibiliteit willen we trouwens ook een betere afstemming van ons energieverbruik op de voordelen van de markt.
On top of the Energy Reduction Plan, we want to maximise our power from renewable energy. Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) are necessary for our hospital to hedge our energy budget, providing a reliable source of cost-effective green energy.