The Mulhouse conurbation wants to recover waste heat from Rhine industrialists – Le Journal des Entreprises

Mulhouse Alsace Agglomeration (m2A) relies on manufacturers to reduce its carbon footprint and its energy dependence. The Haut-Rhin urban community will entrust a semi-public company (Sem) with the creation and operation of a waste heat network supplied by companies from the Rhine strip. The 200 gigawatt hours per year recovered should make it possible to heat the equivalent of 20,000 to 25,000 homes, i.e. the capacity of the three heating networks in service in the agglomeration, currently supplied by the incineration of waste, wood and gas. .

Looking for companies

Feasibility studies have been carried out and Mulhouse Alsace Agglomeration plans to enter into contracts with manufacturers and set up the Sem this summer, the launch of project management by the end of the year and the start of work in 2024 for a delivery in 2026, or even in 2025. “We are making sure that the companies which could carry out this type of work are available. This is a major problem, because other heating networks are under construction elsewhere”, underlines Julien Chazerand, director energy performance and buildings in the agglo.

As for the manufacturers who could provide the waste heat, negotiations are underway. At this point, the only confirmed name is the Euroglas glass specialist (2021 turnover: €64.8 million, less than 200 employees), located in Homburg and a subsidiary of the Swiss group Glas Trösch. The other actors would be among those involved in the “Blue industries Sud Alsace” decarbonization program, in particular in Chalampé.

140,000 million euros

The amount of the overall investment is estimated between 140 to 150 million euros: 100 million euros for the construction of the network of about thirty kilometers between the Rhine strip and the Illberg; 40 million the distribution network of about twenty kilometers which would serve the heart of the agglomeration. Mulhouse Alsace Agglomeration hopes for a subsidy of up to a third of the total cost by the National Agency for Energy Transition (Ademe).

The shares of Sem will be shared between Mulhouse Alsace Agglomeration (66%) and Urban Heat Networks of Alsace (R-CUA, 2020 turnover: €7.38 million, less than 50 employees). This subsidiary of the mixed economy company Réseaux Gaz naturel de Strasbourg (R-GDS) and the Swiss energy cooperative Primeo Énergie is already the majority shareholder (51%) of Valorim, a company that provides public service delegation for one of the district’s heating networks. “R-CUA provides the technical capacity. The company has a similar waste heat exploitation experience in Strasbourg. The Sem allows us to face very heavy investments. We are going to take out loans and R-CUA will provide current accounts for partners”, explains Rémy Neumann, vice-president of m2A in charge of heating networks. The agglo is also hoping for the support of the Banque des Territoires.

The elected official insists: “This is a flagship project which will make it possible to reduce gas consumption and CO emissions.₂. We will have a very positive carbon footprint at the end of the mandate.” Supplying the Illberg thermal power station with the new network would make it possible to substitute almost all the gas it consumes – 45% of its resource for -, but also to substantially reduce the share of heat produced from wood biomass, from 55% to 5%.