The Headland Hotel: 25% Reduction in Fuel Consumption and £54,191 Annual Saving
How an iconic Cornish clifftop hotel and spa cut heating and hot water costs across their entire estate, including 40 holiday cottages, without disrupting a single guest or booking.
Results at a Glance
25%
Fuel Reduction
£54,191
Projected Annual Saving
£381k
Previous Annual Energy Spend
0
Days of Disruption
The Challenge
The Headland Hotel occupies a dramatic clifftop position above Fistral Beach in Newquay, Cornwall. Renowned for luxurious accommodation, a full spa, aqua centre and fine dining, the hotel also manages 40 self-catering holiday cottages spread across the estate.
Annual expenditure on heating and hot water across the entire site had reached £380,883. With multiple buildings and plant rooms serving different functions, any intervention had to be carefully staged and completely non-disruptive to guests, spa visitors and holiday cottage bookings.
The hotel’s forward-thinking approach to environmental sustainability made them keen to explore solutions that could reduce costs without requiring significant downtime or major capital investment in new boiler plant.
The Solution
Following a site visit, heat transfer optimisation technology was agreed for installation across the Headland estate, with a guarantee that installation costs would not exceed year-one savings.
Access was required only in the plant rooms. No downtime was needed on the heating or hot water systems. The main hotel, spa and aqua centre were completed in April 2024. To work around peak holiday cottage lettings, the 40 cottage installations were split into two phases: 20 units in April 2024 and the remaining 20 in November 2024.
Savings verification uses degree-day adjustment and occupancy data to produce a true like-for-like comparison, removing the effects of weather variation and changes in guest numbers.
Installed around lettings
Phased installation worked around peak holiday cottage bookings. No disruption to the hotel, spa, aqua centre or guest accommodation at any point.
Plant room access only
No works in guest areas or operational spaces. The heating and hot water systems remained live throughout the entire process.
Savings guaranteed
Year-one savings were guaranteed to exceed installation costs before any work began.
The Results
Across the whole site, the Headland Hotel achieved a 25% reduction in kWh per degree day per guest. Savings measured over the first six months at current gas rates reached £23,779. The projected annual saving is £54,191.
The hotel has also negotiated improved gas tariffs during this period, reducing the comparable baseline cost to £216,768 at current rates. The 25% consumption reduction is achieved on top of that procurement benefit.
“We were delighted with how non-invasive the installation was, with no disruption experienced to the hotel’s operation, working around holiday bookings in the cottages. The installation was carried out on the main hotel building in April 2024, and since then we have seen savings of energy usage in excess of 20% measured in kWh per degree, per day, per guest, compared against the previous year, to give truly comparable figures. The system will be a benefit to the hotel for decades to come.”
Richard Palmer, Director — The Headland Hotel, Newquay
Could Your Hotel Achieve Similar Results?
Heating and hot water typically represent 40 to 60 percent of a hotel’s total energy bill. If your property spends more than £20,000 a year on heating, there is a strong case for a no-obligation assessment.
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