MVV Energie recently announced its own plans to build impressive high capacity industrial heat pump modules in Mannheim, Germany. As an all-electric project, this groundbreaking initiative is putting four high-performance heat pump units to work. Each unit has a capacity of 44 megawatts (MW), providing a combined maximum output of 176 MW. The project will eventually fulfill almost one third of Mannheim’s heating demand. It is scheduled to open in the winter of 2028-29.
The heat pumps will use existing thermal energy in the Rhine River. They’ll do this using a pioneering system that pumps up to 10,000 liters of river water per second. This remarkable capacity can be attributed to an early and extremely successful project in Esbjerg, Denmark. Like that project, located south of Aalborg, it had a total capacity of 176 MW. The heat pumps in the Mannheim project represent a significant step forward in renewable energy utilization, reflecting a broader trend towards sustainable heating solutions.
The full cost of the Mannheim project is set at €200 million (around $2.3 million or £176 million). The system will increase cost-effectiveness and restoration speed. It will rely on enormous hot water storage tanks, each capable of containing up to 200,000 cubic meters of liquid. This approach to design is intended to control heating needs, especially at peak demand periods.
As part of the project, they will install a four-step filtration system. This new system will stop fish from being sucked into the heat pumps. Such measures help to maintain the ecological integrity of the Rhine River. It will ensure their river’s average temperature change is kept below 0.1 degrees Celsius.
Felix Hack, a representative of MVV Energie, touched on the urgency and the need that drove the transition toward renewable heating sources.
“There was a lot of pressure on us to change the heat generation to new sources, especially renewable sources,” – Felix Hack
The operational strategies, planned for the heat pumps, add significance to the sustainable practices. According to Alexandre de Rougemont, the system is purpose-built for flexibility in order to respond to changes in electricity pricing.
“When the electricity price is high, you stop your heat pump and only provide heat from the storage,” – Alexandre de Rougemont
Everllence is developing an analogous but even larger and more potent initiative in the city of Aalborg, Denmark. This new initiative takes the promise of heat pump technology to a new, larger level. It raises the bar for what’s expected of future projects in the sector.
Whatever the outcome, MVV Energie has moved the ball forward on its vision for Mannheim. Thermal energy sourcing was an important challenge elucidated by Timo Aaltonen.
“We calculated that we would need to build a tunnel more than 20km long to the ocean, to get enough water [with a] temperature high enough,” – Timo Aaltonen
These versatile heat pump systems can be tailored to meet local heating demands. They want to reduce carbon footprints and independence on fossil fuels in alignment with global efforts to combat climate change.