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Energy distribution - efficient and sustainable

Energy distribution for the heat transition

Global warming poses immense challenges for us. Decarbonization and the use of renewable energies are of great importance to counteract climate change. With its geothermal combined heat and power plant, Stadtwerke Schwerin is sending a strong signal for the heating transition. The SIVACON S8 low-voltage switchgear plays a central role in this.

Learn more about renewable energies and the role of our Siemens low-voltage switchgear in the energy transition at the Schwerin geothermal power plant.

Green district heating for Schwerin

The state capital of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania is a pioneer in renewable energies. The deep pump of the geothermal combined heat and power plant of Stadtwerke Schwerin was put into operation in 2023 in the presence of Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

The advantages are obvious: Compared to solar and wind energy, geothermal energy is constantly available all year round, without temperature fluctuations. Furthermore, with only two temporary drilling sites, the plant saves a lot of space compared to wind turbines and solar systems and is hardly larger than a gymnasium from the outside.

In 2018, the first boreholes were drilled at a depth of 1,300 m to determine whether enough warm water was available in the Earth's interior. At 56 degrees Celsius, the thermal water is actually too cold to be able to use the thermal energy for district heating. But thanks to four new high-performance heat pumps, the water is heated to 82 degrees and made usable.

geothermal heat pump

The heat pump room in the geothermal power plant

The city of Schwerin wants to be climate-neutral by 2035. With the geothermal heating plant, 7,500 tons of CO2 can be saved annually.
Julia Panke, Press Spokesperson, Stadtwerke Schwerin GmbH (SWS)

Challenge: Electrical installation XXL

How can 2,000 households be supplied with district heating in an almost climate-neutral way? The company Energieanlagen Nord – EAN has successfully taken on this task in the construction of the geothermal plant in Schwerin. The biggest challenge in electrical engineering was to build a fail-safe switchgear.

Whether for heating or showering, the hot water supply must be 100% available at all times.

Power distribution switchgear

The heart of energy distribution: The switchgear with SENTRON 3WA

The reliable solution for the energy distribution of the new heating plant: Two redundant SIVACON S8 low-voltage switchgears designed for a nominal operating current of 5,000 amperes each, which were installed there by Technology Partner Elektro Fink Schaltanlagenbau. The integrated SENTRON 3WA open circuit breakers protect and monitor at the same time, thus additionally minimizing the risk of system malfunctions in the district heating supply.

The future clearly belongs to green energies. The heat supply from the geothermal plant is doubly secured in the event of an accident.
Steffen Enthaler, Project manager, Energieanlagen Nord GmbH

Sustainability in switchgear construction

Elektro Fink attaches great importance to sustainability in the construction of switchgear. In addition to first-class components for energy distribution and energy monitoring, the company relies on its own photovoltaic system to supply itself with green energy almost all year round and to establish sustainable production.

As a Siemens Technology Partner, Elektro Fink has specialized in the high-performance SIVACON S8 switchgear since 2015. In the geothermal heating plant, specially designed, large copper busbars were used as a connection between the transformer and the switchgear, which ensure efficient power transmission. The control panels, which weigh around 1.3 tons per panel, were precisely applied on site with a manufacturing tolerance of 0.5 mm. This optimizes the functionality and efficiency of the switchgear and avoids energy losses.

Geothermie Heizwerk Referenz Elektro Fink

Arne Fink provides insights into switchgear construction in his family business.

Whether geothermal, wind or solar: With our SIVACON S8 switchgear, you are well equipped for the future.
Arne Fink, Managing Director, Elektro Fink Schaltanlagenbau GmbH & Co. KG

Fail-safe energy supply

The supply of 2,000 households in Schwerin with green district heating requires stable operation. With the robust SENTRON 3WA open circuit breakers, Siemens offers a reliable

solution to minimize possible system malfunctions. The intelligent circuit breakers not only protect the heat pumps of the heating plant, but also the associated switchgear and cables from damage caused by overload or short circuits. The integrated condition monitoring system monitors the circuit breakers independently in order to detect possible wear at an early stage.

SENTRON-3WA

Open circuit breakers SENTRON 3WA

To ensure smooth operation during maintenance work, the heat pumps of the heating plant are equipped with redundant feeds. Each feed is protected by an open SENTRON 3WA circuit breaker with plug-in technology. Thanks to a permanently integrated crank, it can be dismantled in just one minute. This significantly reduces maintenance times.

Through real-time communication via PROFINET, all technical statuses are transmitted to a central control center. This will enable several geothermal power plants to be operated and managed in a network in the future. This contributes to sustainability and enables energy efficiency of up to 30% with full availability.

A geothermal power plant must be 100% available. The SENTRON 3WA open circuit breaker protects and monitors every electrical event.
Frank Scheunert, Product Business Development Manager, Siemens AG