Funding Project: Sustainable Retrofit of Steam Generation at Peter Greven
The Peter Greven Group is investing in the further development and modernization of its
production facilities.
As part of a funding project under the Federal Industry and Climate Protection Program (BIK) of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWE), Peter Greven will implement the largest sustainability-focused renovation project to date at its headquarters in Bad Münstereifel by the end of 2028: The electrification of steam generation.
Peter Greven Group continuously invests in the further development and modernization of its production sites. As part of a funding project under the Federal Funding for Industry and Climate Protection (BIK) of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWE), Peter Greven will implement the largest sustainability-oriented project at the headquarters in Bad Münstereifel, DE by the end of 2028: the electrification of steam production.
Steam is one of the most important energy carriers in the chemical industry and is required for a wide range of production and process steps. So far, process steam is mostly generated via steam boilers using fossil raw materials. Therefore, steam generation accounts for a significant share of total energy consumption, providing an important lever to reduce CO2 emissions in production.
The project concept for meeting process-steam demand using volatile PV-generated electricity, which Peter Greven submitted to last year’s BIK funding competition launched by the BMWE , has been approved and the company is currently undertaking detailed technical planning.
Goal of the project is to replace the recent steam boiler operated with natural gas by a combination of an electrical high-performance superheater and a thermal high-temperature energy storage system as well as a downstream steam generator. The major share of electricity used is intended to come from an adjacent PV plant. With the planned configuration of the new system, it will be possible to decouple energy consumption and steam production by using stored thermal energy. This way electricity procurement can be matched to the fluctuating availability of renewable energy and help avoid overloads in the power grid while supporting stable grid frequency.
In addition to the advantages the system brings for a future energy system characterized by volatile availability, it will also make a significant contribution to the decarbonization of the production site: with the switch from gas-based steam generation to green electricity, CO2 emissions savings of up to 78% are anticipated.
