Bristol heat networks sale price 'undervalued' says councillor

Swedish energy company Vattenfall is set to buy the network in the autumn

Publicly-owned heat networks in Bristol, which are set to be sold to a Swedish company, are being "undervalued", a councillor has said.

Geoff Gollop said he was "troubled" by the way the project was being handled, with the sale to Vattenfall likely to go through in the autumn.

The city council owns the networks and estimates their value at £20m.

"The published figure almost certainly represents an undervaluation," said Mr Gollop.

The networks take heat from a central source and deliver it to domestic and non-domestic buildings and are seen as a key technology for decarbonising heating as they do not rely on fossil fuels.

Heat networks are being installed in Bristol's Old Market, Redcliffe and Bedminster areas, with a new project under development in Temple.

As part of a the proposed deal, Vattenfall would run the networks across Bristol

Council chiefs estimated the value of the networks using their 'book value' which looks at the initial cost of network installation and buying the equipment, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

But Mr Gollop, the opposition Conservative finance spokesman, said book value is "not a normal accounting metric", and the council should also consider income generated.

"The authority is normally obliged to achieve best value for its assets and any disposal should be at the best price reasonably obtainable," he said.

Labour cabinet member for climate, Kye Dudd, said the valuation was "an estimate at this stage".

"The final price will be decided and there's a process yet to go through.

"A number of the assets haven't been built yet or are in the process of being built, so it's hard to value something that is being built as we speak," he added.