Introducing Agglomeration Pau Béarn Pyréenées
Introducing TREASURE consortium member - Agglomeration Pau Béarn Pyréenées.
Agglomeration Pau Béarn Pyréenées (inter-municipal structure, gathering 31 cities and 170 000 inhabitants since the 1st of January 2017). It is the 2nd largest city of south-west of France after Bordeaux. Its geographical position between Bordeaux and Zaragoza offers the city a place in the heart of Europe.
The city can count on a strong and dynamic industrial base and a network of excellence in various sectors, such as geo siences and energy (TOTAL RD center), Aeronautics (SAFRAN Helicopter Engines), Food Industry (EURALIS and MIELS MICHAUD). Pau has achieved excellence in the field of reseach, the innovation hub carried by the Technopole Helioparc and the University of Pau gatherstudents, engineersthatprovidesstrongskills to the 150 firmslocated in the hub.
Pau as an Human Capital, invests in the quality of life and relationshipbetweencitizens. It aims at creating the most harmonious living conditions to enhance personal achivement and protect the more vulnerable.
Pau has all the advantages of a capital on a humanscale, with an exceptional living environment close to nature: quality infrastructures and services, a dynamic companies base and a strong human capital, a reservoir of talent and skills.
Role in the project
In March 2019, the Communautéd'agglomération Pau Béarn Pyrénées awarded Engie Energie Services the contract to build and operate a 44km district heating network, 75% of whose heat output is of renewable origin (50% from waste incineration and 25% from a biomass plant). Since then, the project has undergone successive upward changes due to the successful marketing of the network. The district heating network now supplies 208 delivery points, delivering 132 GWh/year of energy to meet the heating and domestic hot water needs of 1,300 housing equivalents. To date, 3 observations have been made:
The 25% of non-renewable heat is produced using gas, the price of which is highly volatile.
New requests for connection to the heating network have been expressed by a variety of customers, with the challenge, in the event of new connections, of not reducing the rate of renewable energy coverage.
The waste incineration plant has additional waste heat energy during the summer.
In this context, inter-seasonal storage could represent an opportunity to recover this surplus thermal energy in the summer and use it in the winter at a controlled price.
The CAPBP is committed to taking part in the effective implementation of the Pit storage study alongside NewHeat and Engie, i.e. participating in the feasibility study and optimising the operation of the district heating network.
It will also contribute to discussions on the social, regulatory and financialacceptability of such a demonstrator.