Greifswald: Thermal power plant offline – hot water worries loom!

Greifswald: Thermal power plant offline – hot water worries loom!

Starting today, an important step will be taken to maintain the heat supply in Greifswald. The Helmshäger Berg thermal power plant is operated by July 14th to 17th temporarily removed from the district heating network. This scheduled maintenance work on the hot water generators is necessary to ensure the efficiency of the heat supply in the city.

Those responsible deliberately scheduled the work during the warm season, as this is when the district heating load is lowest. During the maintenance work, the heat supply will be guaranteed from other sources, in particular the combined heat and power plant on Kaplaufenstrasse. Nevertheless, as the news magazine reports, short-term restrictions on heating and hot water supply cannot be ruled out. More than 70 percent of households in Greifswald receive district heating - so their patience will be put to the test during these few days.

Background to the Greifswald municipal utilities

Stadtwerke Greifswald GmbH, which is responsible for the local heat supply, looks back on an eventful history. Since the closure of the Lubmin nuclear power plant in 1992, the question of alternative heat sources in the region has arisen. In order to secure the heat supply in the long term, the company decided to build up its own capacities and has been relying on the technology since 2004 Combined heat and power (CHP). This technology is considered a central component of the energy transition and makes it possible to generate electricity and heat at the same time.

Nevertheless, the infrastructure is getting old and needs to be renewed so that the municipal utilities can continue to operate economically. CHP systems offer numerous advantages, not only from an economic perspective, but also with regard to the upcoming climate goals in Germany. According to the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection, the aim is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 95 percent by 2050. The heating networks, which also include the Greifswald supply, play a crucial role in this, as they centrally supply many buildings with heat efficiently and sustainably.

The future of heat supply

Modern CHP systems are at the interface between the electricity and heat markets and can use both fossil and renewable fuels. In the future, it is expected that CHP systems will increasingly replace fossil fuels in order to further reduce emissions. This fits seamlessly into the planned measures to reduce emissions and support the energy transition. It is important that the framework conditions for cogeneration are realigned in order to create sustainable infrastructure and enable more flexibility in the heating sector.

In Greifswald, the temporary shutdown of the Helmshäger Berg thermal power plant is not only a technical necessity, but also a step towards an environmentally conscious and sustainable future for heat supply. The municipal utilities are doing everything they can to keep the impact on citizens as minimal as possible. Everyone involved is optimistic that after maintenance work has been carried out, the thermal power plant will be fully available again and can continue to meet the city's high requirements.