As Britain shivers.

As Britain shivers, our carbon emissions soar. It doesn’t have to be this way.

We’ve seen the headlines. At points in 2020, renewables have provided us with almost 70% of our energy (Drax Electrical Insights report). But as we are locked down in our own homes with sub-zero temperatures outside, it is a very different story. The demand for electricity has increased. On Saturday afternoon, almost 60% of our electricity demand was being met by carbon-spewing fossil fuels. Worst of all, coal, the dirtiest of all fossil fuels accounted for 7% of this. Renewable energy, made just 15% of that supply.

Whilst the UK is a leader in offshore wind; we are still many years from being able to abandon fossil fuels. Recently, the UK has been experiencing weather that has been calm and sunny with low temperatures thanks to a high-pressure system from the Arctic.

Changing weather conditions have led to somewhat unpredictable and unreliable weather trends. With renewable energy relying on these, the consumption of fossil fuels has remained consistent due to their dependability. Our reliance on fossil fuels is driven by the ability to control their output to help meet electricity demands.

On paper, it would seem our chances of reducing our carbon footprint from fossil fuels is bleak. However, an innovative new Scottish technology company has incredible disruptive new technology set to radically improve the green credentials of traditional gas, coal and other thermal generation plants.

Katrick Technologies, an engineering technology business evolved from a background of developing more efficient wave energy technologies. Their experimentation discovered a radical new approach that massively improves the efficiency and carbon footprint of power plants, data centres, and other big heat-producing complexes.

It is not commonly known that an average thermal heat power generation plant, the kind our grid heavily relies on, is only around 40% efficient. Most of the energy is lost to waste heat and released into the atmosphere. However, Katrick Technologies is able capture this wasted heat and are able to convert and transform it into reliable zero carbon energy for consumption.

With Katrick’s new thermal vibration technology, the financial and environmental statistics are staggering. Using the total thermal heat loss across the UK, this would mean the national grid could receive up to £388 million more electricity from existing facilities and lower annual carbon emissions by over 1.66 million Tonnes. That’s the equivalent of planting 78 million new trees or powering 7.5 million homes.

Founder Karthik Velayutham profoundly believes in a low carbon future and welcomes the growth of renewables. But he is pragmatic and recognises that, for our planet, our 2030 targets will be hard to attain without being realistic about our continued fossil fuel reliance. Velayutham stated “It is optimistic to believe we will cease reliance on fossil fuels any time soon, but I believe we can make their use more environmentally friendly, and profitable. We are fast-tracking our technology prototype in 2021 to help the industry make profitable carbon-zero a reality.”

With a presence slated for this year’s COP26 in Glasgow, aggressive growth plans, and multiple grant-funded projects in the public sector, this green start-up is a part of our carbon emissions solution in the years to come.

But like all aspects of beating climate change, action is required. Katrick is looking for investment from environmentally-minded businesses, partnerships with energy generators, and local and national government support. It is working together, big ideas and innovation that will make our climate targets achievable.

About Katrick Technologies Ltd.

Katrick Technologies is a start-up company, focused on innovative energy technologies for a greener planet. Our heat, wind and wave technologies are set to bring new levels of efficiency and flexibility to the energy, data-centre and manufacturing industry. Our business is focused on supporting the UK’s transition to a low carbon economy and meeting the country’s climate change targets while creating career opportunities for the local community. For additional information, visit www.katricktechnologies.com.