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From the left: Gunther Müller, spokesman of the management board of Vattenfall Wärme Berlin AG - Edgar Scheider, project manager - Oliver Igel, district mayor of Treptow-Köpenick
NOT ENVIRONMENTAL CHARITY BUT GOOD BUSINESS As with all energy productions, it is necessary to make an initial investment of a considerable size. Having done so, large-scale solar heating installations are low-cost maintenance to run, and the collector fields gathering the solar radiation have a lifespan of a minimum of 25 years. Some of the earliest installations were developed 30 years ago and they are still running. Large-scale solar heating is not environmental charity; it is an investment with a solid return – and with the fantastic benefit of being a renewable energy source at the same time. IMPRESSIVE SIGHT What about the effect on the local community and the neighbours of the solar heating plants? It does not smell, there is no noise and it does not pollute. It is as clean as it gets when talking about renewable energy sources. If it is beautiful to look at is a matter of taste and opinion, but it must be preferable compared to an abandoned landfill or a former mink feed factory. LEADING THE WAY From a fiscal viewpoint, an environmental consideration, and an energy supply calculation as well as from a city planning perspective large-scale solar heating plants is a sustainable path to take in urban areas both now and in the future. The Köpenick project is unique. The urban location is in itself very special, and the solar heating system is compact and efficient maximizing output and minimizing costs. The communities and energy suppliers of Graz in Austria, Trustrup-Lyngby in Denmark and Berlin in Germany are leading the way. Many European cities could follow in their footsteps.
The heating plant in Trustrup-Lyngby cuts the annual heating price by an astonishing 30% with immediate effect, and is thus a fine example of how large-scale solar heating can generate several positive side effects for the community. It makes environmental as well as economic sense to use former industrial sites or other vacant premises for a large-scale solar heating. Locations that would normally be deemed unsuitable can be converted into sound, sustainable business. These aspects become even more obvious in densely populated areas where space is quite often an issue to be dealt with. THOUSANDS OF SHOWERS IN BERLIN Vattenfall, one of the leading European energy companies, has set an ambitious objective to make fossil-free living possible within one generation. Therefore, renewable energy production and smart energy solutions will play an important part of the energy supply in the future. A pioneering project in Köpenick, Berlin, is both. The project is one of the first to be developed in a major city and will supply the residents with what corresponds to 14,000 CO2-free showers annually. It was officially handed over in May 2018. The system was fully assembled and thoroughly tested in Denmark and then moved to Berlin, which literally means that it was “plug ‘n’ play” upon arrival at the Köpenick site. The solar field is constructed right next to the existing district heating facility, which minimizes the energy loss in the piping system. Furthermore, the ground on which the solar field is placed is already owned by Vattenfall, reducing the initial investment significantly.
For further information please contact:
ARCON Sunmark A/S Att.: Ole Dalby Skørping Nord 3 DK-9520 Skørping
Phone: +45 9839 1477 od@arcon-sunmark.com
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