Energy transition at Feldhaus Klinker

The path to CO2-free production of bricks

The EU is to be climate neutral by 2050. In addition, greenhouse gas emissions are to be reduced by at least 55 percent below 1990 levels by 2030. These are still the current goals being pursued by the federal government and trade associations. When these targets were defined, there was no Corona, supply chains were functioning, and natural gas was supplied from Russia on favorable terms.

Today, we know that we have to become independent of fossil fuels in order to be able to produce safely and climate-neutrally in the long term. The most obvious solution for us: natural gas must be replaced by hydrogen. However, the production of hydrogen requires large amounts of electricity, which are not available on the market in such quantities. If the goal of climate neutrality is also pursued, only renewable power generation can be considered. For Feldhaus Klinker, the answer to the question of how to achieve this goal was quickly clear: The existing hall roofs will be fitted with PV modules, as will other open spaces owned by the company. The use of wind energy is another option for generating "green power". The energy generated at the site is converted into "green hydrogen" on site by means of an electrolyzer and used to operate the three furnaces.

The vision in numbers:

  • Long-term substitution of natural gas by means of green hydrogen
  • For the transition phase, the hydrogen is first mixed with the natural gas and used for the drying and combustion process
  • Production of "green hydrogen" with in-house 10 megawatt electrolyzer using photovoltaics and wind energy
  • Purchase of "green electricity" from energy suppliers for the times when no own electricity can be generated, in order to be able to operate the electrolyzer at the best possible efficiency level
  • Maximum area utilization for photovoltaics of roof and open spaces on the company premises and nearby private areas up to 25ha with an energy yield of approx. 18 MWp
  • Use of own wind energy up to 15 MWp

The schedule:

  1. Quarter 2022

  • Create technical feed-in option for admixing hydrogen at the central gas transfer station

  1. Quarter 2023

  • Commission electrical infrastructure in the form of a 10 MW plant ring main with decentralized feed-in points for photovoltaics.
  • Occupation of the 1st half of all company roof surfaces with photovoltaics, approx. 5 MWp

  1. Quarter 2023

  • Occupation of the 2nd half of all company roof surfaces with photovoltaics, approx. 4 MWp

  1. Quarter 2024

  • Admixture of hydrogen

The starting signal for the energy turnaround has been given: the first 1250 m² of solar modules have been installed on the roof surfaces.
Later, additional "green power" could be generated by wind power, as indicated here in the picture.