Official opening BioThermal Installation Lage Weide
After several months of testing, Eneco’s new biothermal installation was officially put into operation today by the mayor of Utrecht, Jan van Zanen, and Eneco’s COO Frans van de Noort. The new plant supplies heat to more than 50,000 households and businesses connected to the district heating grids in Utrecht and Nieuwegein.
With the new plant on stream, the gas-fuelled plants at the same location that were the main heating sources until now, can scale down. As a result, CO2 emissions will be reduced by 40,000 tons. The new plant is in line with Eneco’s strategy to make the supply of heat to its customers more sustainable and is an important step on Eneco’s roadmap towards increasing the sustainability of district heating in Utrecht and Nieuwegein.
Biothermal energy
The new plant uses waste wood resulting from the maintenance of parks, public gardens and forests in the region. This includes branches that are part of the green waste that cannot be used for other useful purposes. Naturally, the sustainability requirements for biomass used in the new plant are very strict.
Second phase
The plant is now on stream and generates 30 MWth of heat. This completes the first phase. The implementation of the second phase has also started, which will result in the supply of an additional 30 MWth of heat to the district heating grid from the end of 2020. Ultimately, the plant will ensure that 40% of the district heating in Utrecht and Nieuwegein will be sustainable, as CO2 emissions will be reduced by a total of 80,000 tons on a yearly basis.
Eneco is planning to connect even more sustainable sources to the district heating grid over the coming years, including heat supplied by the sewage water treatment installation RWZI De Stichtse Rijnlanden.
Photo above: Frans van de Noort, COO Eneco (left) and mayor of Utrecht Jan van Zanen