Case Study: Silkeborg Heating Plant achieves 15,700-tonne annual CO2 reduction with Danfoss Drives

The world’s largest solar hot water system - reduces annual CO2 emissions by 15,700 tonnes

Silkeborg Heating Plant, a district heating utility in Denmark, sought to transition to CO2-neutral heat production by 2030. To help achieve this ambitious goal and prepare for reductions in government subsidies for traditional power, the plant chose vendor Danfoss and its VLT® AQUA Drives to control the pump systems for a massive new solar heating installation.

The solution involved using Danfoss VLT® AQUA Drives to control eight water pumps, minimizing their energy consumption for distributing the heat. The result is the world's largest solar hot water system, which now supplies 18-20% of the municipality's annual heat consumption and reduces CO2 emissions by 15,700 tonnes per year. The Danfoss drives also contributed to a 30% cost reduction in the first year compared to traditional drive systems.

Silkeborg Heating Plant

Per Hvilshøj Christiansen

Project Manager