After The Games - A Review Of Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games

Recent analysis of the energy provided to the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games by Aggreko, has shown a clear reduction of carbon emissions from its power equipment for the international multi-sport event.

In line with their ambition to create the most sustainable Commonwealth Games yet, organisers worked closely with its partners, stakeholders and suppliers to reduce its carbon footprint. Central to this was the way the event was powered. As the Official Modular Energy Solutions Supporter for Birmingham 2022, Aggreko was responsible for the temporary energy framework for all 15 of the Games’ venues.

Powering the games

The Games successfully took a ‘mains first’ approach which utilised each venue’s existing infrastructure, and where temporary energy was needed, Aggreko stepped in to support.

This included powering large-scale venues such as Alexander Stadium and Coventry Stadium & Arena, to other key sites including the Birmingham 2022 Athletes’ Villages at the University of Birmingham and at the University of Warwick.

Aggreko’s fleet included 117 of the latest Stage V Generators, ranging from 30kVA up to 600kVa, all running on hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) – a more sustainable fuel source which reduced CO2 by c.90% compared to a diesel fuelled generator. This meant the overall CO2 saving was around 1,614 tonnes of CO2e.

Compared to Stage IIIa engines, these generators reduced emissions including nitrogen oxide, particular matter and hydrocarbons (NOx, PM and HC) improving their overall air quality impact. With considerations for the local surroundings of venues, the acoustically designed equipment also resulted in significant noise reduction.

The generators operated in a Load on Demand configuration – replacing one large generator with smaller generators that power up or down according to demand. The performance of generator and distribution equipment were continually analysed at Aggreko’s remote monitoring centre to ensure it was always running at peak efficiency.

Solar power

In conjunction with the hybrid generators, Aggreko also produced around 10.8 MWh of clean solar energy at Victoria Park in Royal Leamington Spa. This accounted for a third of the energy consumed by that venue as the rest was produced at optimal efficiency due to the use of battery storage to hybridise energy generation.

James Eade, Head of Energy for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, says: “Aggreko’s extensive planning and capability to deliver sustainable temporary energy solutions were crucial in our attempts to significantly reduce emissions. Collectively we worked hard to ensure nearly all venues displayed some element of new technology or techniques in respect of temporary power generation and delivery.”

Robert Wells, Managing Director of Event Solutions at Aggreko, adds: “Encouraged by the organisers commitment to reduce its carbon footprint, we wanted to build on our experience in providing energy efficient solutions for large-scale global events. Aggreko was whole-heartedly committed to its responsibility as Modular Energy Solutions Supporter and is proud of the partnership we continue to strengthen with the Commonwealth Games by supporting the drive towards creating a carbon neutral legacy.

“Our Greener Upgrades initiative has enabled us to advise customers with ease on the changes they can make to reduce harmful emissions and our fleet is fully equipped to implement operational change. We will continue to find innovative ways of supporting the transition to greener energy across both large-scale events and the many other industrial sectors we serve.”

For more information on our Greener Upgrade solutions, CLICK HERE