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Former colliery delivers heat to Seaham Garden Village homes in UK first

35 years after its closure, Dawdon Colliery is once again providing heat for its local community. In a UK first, an above-ground mine water heating system has officially started supplying low-carbon heat to some of the first homes that have been completed at the Seaham Garden Village development.

Unlike traditional schemes that require drilling new boreholes, this project captures geothermal heat from water already being pumped to the surface for environmental treatment at the Dawdon mine water treatment scheme.

The heat network is currently serving some of the first homes at Seaham Garden Village and will expand as the development grows. In time, it is expected to provide low-carbon heat to up to 750 Karbon Homes properties, with further expansion potential across the wider development.

With the support of the Mining Remediation Authority, Karbon Homes, and Durham County Council, Vital Energi have delivered the state-of-the-art energy centre that uses a water source heat pump to extract and boost heat from the disused mine water.

This project is proof of how innovation and partnership can unlock clean, affordable heating for communities today.

Andrew Simpson, Head of Innovation, Mining Remediation Authority

A heat network is an alternative to individual heat sources, which can supply heating and hot water to homes and businesses through a network of underground pipes. Heat networks could be a key facilitator of decarbonisation as they often utilise unused or wasted heat sources to generate wider scale hot water, helping boost local energy resilience, and lower carbon emissions.

Vital Community Energi, the dedicated energy services (ESCo) division of Vital Energi, will own, operate and maintain the asset supplying heat to the development. They will provide the full customer-facing service for residents at Seaham Garden Village, including metering and billing through the proprietary Glass app and access to a 24/7 operation and maintenance team.

I am proud that Seaham Garden Village will operate under our complete Energy Services Company (ESCo), marking another significant milestone in the expansion of our owned and operated heat networks. As with all our ESCo projects, customers remain our top priority. That is why we have ensured residents benefit from stable and efficient heating and hot water, delivering lasting benefits into a community that was affected by the closure of the mines.

Rob Callaghan , Managing Director, Vital Community Energi

Lowering the carbon footprint of our homes and operations, whilst also positively impacting the lives of our customers is really important to us. Residents have been moving in since the beginning of the year, and they are delighted with their new homes and the mine water heating.

Sarah Robson , Executive Director, Karbon Homes

We’re really pleased to have helped facilitate this scheme which will ensure that people can live in affordable homes at Seaham Garden Village. This project makes impressive use of the legacy left by our coal mining heritage, using mine water to create a heat network supplying heat and hot water to around 750 homes. This is an exciting emerging option for heating our homes, and we’re looking closely to see where else it might be viable in the future.

Cllr Kyle Genner , Durham County Council’s Cabinet Member

As part of the scheme’s wider commitment to the local community, Vital Energi hosted an open day to help residents better understand the benefits of living on a heat network. The event highlighted how the development will reduce carbon emissions, improve energy efficiency, and support long-term community well-being.

With 25% of UK homes and businesses situated above former coal mining areas, this project is pioneering low-carbon energy generation by transforming abandoned infrastructure into valuable green heat sources.

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