Sectoral decarbonization option with potential impact in the URBANLAND OWL
Sector Coupling
To achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement, fossil fuels must be phased out. In this spirit, new photovoltaic and wind power plants have been built in recent years. When the wind blows or the sun shines, electricity is generated, most of which is used directly and the surplus is stored. However, the reality is overproduction, for which an appropriate storage medium is lacking. The consequences are forced shutdowns of green energy plants, which cost around 710 million euros nationwide in 2019 alone. Hydrogen, especially green hydrogen, offers new possibilities here: it is an ideal energy carrier that can be produced from renewable energies, stored in large quantities and later converted back into electricity – completely climate-neutral.
Goals and Content
The topics of hydrogen and energy system transformation are also making more and more progress in the municipality of Kalletal and in the district of Herford. Through the joint efforts of the Lippe municipality and the neighboring district, together with the Fachhochschule des Mittelstands (FHM), which represents the scientific part in this East Westphalian alliance, the “Sector Coupling” project was included in the nationwide funding competition “Zukunft Region” of the BMWK.
The focus of the project is the inter-municipal network between the municipality of Kalletal and the district of Herford, which aims to develop a future concept over the next two years that targets the sectoral energy merger with its respective companies as a solution. According to the ideas of the Federal Ministry, the concept should then be implemented in the following three years through a corresponding follow-up funding.
The project consists of two components. The first component involves the direct transfer of energy between the municipality of Kalletal and the district of Herford, and the second component aims to link the Kalletal sustainability strategy with the business network of the district of Herford and its hydrogen expertise. In combination with this, FHM is to contribute its expertise on the Sustainability Compass to the project. Furthermore, it is planned that the FHM will provide assistance with its expertise in the formation of cooperatives. This is because the infrastructure, which includes an electrolysis plant for the production of hydrogen, is to be planned as an energy cooperative model. This will enable both companies and citizens to participate directly in the profits.
The Kalletal industrial park Echternhagen forms the central starting point for the planned hydrogen cooperation. A “small-scale” blueprint is to be developed that shows how the path to energy independence can be taken. The aim is to create an energy chain that extends beyond the district boundary, from the generation and purchase of hydrogen energy from the municipality of Kalletal, a regenerative hydrogen filling station in the Echternhagen industrial park, to delivery to the Herford district administration as an energy user.
Further projects in the research area of City, Land & Mobility
Sector Coupling
To achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement, fossil fuels must be replaced gradually. In this awareness, new photovoltaic and wind power plants have been built in recent years.
KREGI
The pilot project will develop a comprehensive catalog of measures that takes into account both hard and soft factors such as material resources, mobility, biodiversity and social aspects in order to plan resource- and climate-efficient commercial and industrial areas.
BüWoLand
Creating equivalent living conditions in rural and urban areas and making cities resilient is a particular task of the Federal Government, which is formulated in the coalition agreement.
Open Innovation City Bielefeld
In an era of rapid technological change and social development, innovation is becoming the measure of the continued viability of German cities and regions.
SCALE
The further development of smart city concepts is driven by the continuous digitization and intelligent networking of all areas of life and sectors, such as energy supply systems, mobility, urban living, administration, and healthcare.
