Hāwera Aquatic Centre Temporarily Closes to Install New Heat Pumps

The Hāwera Aquatic Centre will be closed on Tuesday 31 October and Wednesday 1 November while the facility switches over from its gas fired boilers to new electrical heat pumps.

Council's Property and Facilities Manager Phil Waite says commissioning the new electric heat pumps is expected to take about two days although Thursday has been set aside as a contingency should any problems arise.

“Turning on the new heat pumps will be quite a momentous day which will see the Council being able to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by around 33%,” says Mr Waite. “The Hāwera Aquatic Centre accounts for approximately 97% of the Council’s annual natural gas use which represents about a third of the Council’s total carbon emissions. Installing electric air-water heat pumps at the Aquatic Centre will have the single biggest impact on reducing our emissions footprint across all our facilities. It’s estimated to reduce the Aquatic Centre’s annual carbon emissions by 324 tonnes, the equivalent of taking 118 cars off the road,” he says. “In addition, there will be significant energy savings to be made through the upgrade, so it’s a win-win for the Council, our ratepayers and the environment.”

Waite says replacing the boilers with electric heat pumps cost $448,500. The Council received $174,000 from EECA’s (Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority) Technology Demonstration fund, with the remainder being paid for by a loan.

“The loan will be paid for in seven years with savings made from the aquatic centre’s reduced energy costs, so the whole project is cost neutral,” he says.

Residents can check the Hāwera Aquatic Centre's Facebook page or the Council website to see when the pool is reopened.