EQUANS participates in the construction of the first large-scale district heating network in a Walloon city.
How do you heat the city of tomorrow while reducing the impact on our environment? Among the solutions proposed by EQUANS, heating networks are coming to the fore. After the Docks shopping centre, the Royal Estate of Laeken, the Blue Gate project and the new Nieuw Zuid housing estate in Antwerp, it is the turn of the city of Herstal to acquire this new sound and ecological infrastructure. In the near future, schools, hospitals, public buildings and nursing homes will benefit from heat with 92% from recovered energy. The heat will come from the recovery of our waste thanks to the interconnection with the Uvelia-Intradel plant. EQUANS is responsible for construction of the heat recovery and distribution units as well as the auxiliary boiler room.
What is a heating network?
A heating network is an installation that functions as a large-scale central heating system for a district or a city. A primary circuit of pipes brings hot water to secondary substations in order to cover the buildings’ heating and domestic hot water needs. For the end consumer, it is as comfortable as a conventional boiler. The difference lies in the fact that the energy sources used can be greatly varied. In Herstal, the district heating network will be powered by steam produced by the incineration of our waste. Local energy is made possible by the proximity of the Uvelia-Intradel energy recovery unit (ERU).
Heating with our trash bins
Just like wind, solar, photovoltaic or even geothermal energy, our household waste is a real source of energy. With the Intradel-Uvélia energy recovery unit, incinerated waste has until now been recovered exclusively in the form of electricity production. The work carried out by EQUANS will enable the plant to produce heat as well thanks to an ingenious steam recovery system (medium and high pressure) connected to a 17 MWth steam/water heat exchanger. The installation will be supported by a 10 MWth standby and backup boiler, i.e., a total thermal power of 27 MW.
EPC and multi-technical project
The project – carried out on behalf of Urbeo (Herstal’s autonomous community real estate company) and Herstal Energie Verte (HEVE) – covers a wide range of EQUANS services such as civil engineering, mechanics, framework, piping, electricity and command and control. Carried out under an EPC (Engineering Procurement and Construction) contract, it also honours EQUANS’ expertise in terms of engineering, design and conception.
10,815 tonnes of CO2 avoided per year
Our teams installed the equipment in a former disused Intradel hall transformed into a boiler room for the occasion. Three hundred and fifty metres of overhead piping connect the ERU to this boiler room. This is also the building in which the network of piping passes that will bring the hot water to end users. Ultimately, the installation will prevent emissions of 10,815 tonnes of CO2 per year, equivalent to the emissions of 9,922 cars. A savings for Herstalians who will benefit from a reliable and comfortable heating solution, while respecting the environment.
For more information on the project: Herstal Green Energy (herstal-energie-verte.be)
Coriance Group: https://www.groupe-coriance.fr/