Vattenfall invests in innovative heat storage in Berlin

In the coming two years, the company will invest almost 100 MEUR in a new power-to-heat asset as well as in gas-fired heat-only boilers in Berlin’s Spandau district. After commissioning of the new facilities, the hard-coal-fired Unit C of power plant Reuter can be taken off the grid as planned. With a total capacity of 120 MWth, the power-to-heat asset will broaden Vattenfall’s existing experience in the use of future-oriented power-to-heat technology on a large scale. 

“In February this year we took the final investment decision on the construction of the new combined heat and power plant in Berlin-Marzahn. With our second big investment decision this year for the district heating business, we confirm once more our commitment to our Berlin base and support the local government in their ambition to reach climate neutrality for Berlin by 2050,” says Tuomo Hatakka, responsible for Business Area Heat at Vattenfall.

Vattenfall‘s new-built project includes besides the power-to-heat boilers, which uses electricity to generate district heating, also heat-only boilers fired by natural gas. The construction works at Spandau’s Otternbucht street are planned to start in autumn this year. Commissioning is planned for 2019.

The decision for the Reuter project in Berlin is in line with Vattenfall’s strategy and the climate protection agreement with the City of Berlin. Vattenfall consequently progresses towards a total phase-out of hard coal in Berlin by 2030.

Gunther Müller, spokesperson of the board of Vattenfall Wärme AG in Berlin, confirms: “Our district heating is an important player in Berlin’s energy transition. The power-to-heat asset in Spandau will not only optimise the dispatch of the CHP plant Reuter West, but also enable the use of electricity from renewable energy sources to generate climate-friendly district heating in the future.“

This investment is one of the projects under the umbrella of WindNODE, the north-east German model region for intelligent energy. Within the framework of the programme‚ Schaufenster intelligente Energie (SINTEG), the Ministry of Economics and Energy sponsors in total five model regions in Germany, where solutions are being developed for an intelligent energy supply of the future with growing shares of renewable energies.

The investment decision is conditional on the change permit becoming irrevocable in accordance with Germany’s Emission Control law.

Vattenfall discloses this information pursuant to the Swedish Securities Market Act.

For further information, please contact:
Vattenfall’s Press Office, telephone: +46 8 739 50 10, email: press@vattenfall.com