After an enthusiastic and comprehensive introduction by director Gijs de Man, 28 KIVI members visited BioWarmteCentrale De Purmer.

In 1981, shortly after the2nd oil crisis, the Municipality of Purmerend started district heating. Initially, the heat was supplied by the NUON 68 MW WarmteKrachtCentrale (STEG - Steam and Gas turbines). For operational and financial reasons, the company was converted into the private limited company SVP 'Stads Verwarming Purmerend B.V.' as of 1 January 2007 - with the Municipality as 100% shareholder.

Since mid-2014, the WKC has been replaced by the 44 MWth BioWarmteCentrale, consisting of 4 banding furnaces, including peripheral equipment to operate as cleanly and efficiently as possible. DENOX systems (injection with Ammonia water) ensure allowable NOx concentrations in the flue gases, Cloth filters remove fly ash from the flue gases, Bottom ash is collected and disposed of, Flue gas condensers are used to preheat the water, etc.

Around 100,000 tonnes of wood chips are burned per year. These are supplied by the Forestry Commission and are a by-product of the regular management of forests, nature and landscape. This saves over 50,000 tonnes of CO2 on an annual basis. The supply of wood chips can reach 25 80 m3 trucks in winter. The storage bunkers can hold a total of 12,500 m3, good for 1 week of fuel at full capacity.

The BioHeat Plant supplies 80% of the heat demand for the 25,000 customers - 24,000 households and 1,000 businesses. Peak demand is currently supplied by 2 gas-fired auxiliary power plants. Plans are being developed to replace these with an expansion of the BioHeatCentrale.

The board of KIVI Region Noord-Holland has the pleasure of inviting you to attend a company visit to BioWarmteCentrale de Purmer.

The Netherlands has committed to the Paris climate accord agreements. This means reducing CO2 emissions to almost zero by 2050. This requires a drastic reduction in the use of fossil fuels. Buildings will only be heated sustainably in the future. In the near future, the Purmerend municipality wants to take steps to make the first 77 homes natural gas-free.
Besides natural gas, there are many ways in which we can heat a home, cook our food and obtain hot water. The way that fits best depends on the home. Some solutions only work well in an insulated home or in combination with own energy from solar panels, for example.
The heat network of Stadsverwarming Purmerend (SVP) is a network of 550 kilometres of underground pipes through which hot water flows. 80% of this hot water is generated sustainably - with wood chips from Staatsbosbeheer - at BioWarmteCentrale de Purmer. The remaining 20% comes from the two (currently) gas-fired auxiliary heat plants. SVP is investigating how this generation can also be made more sustainable.
The hot water is transported in well-insulated pipes to homes and buildings. Here it releases heat for heating and hot tap water. The cooled water then returns to the power station through other pipes to be reheated.