Forward-looking investment in a new combined heat and power unit at the Wolfratshausen site

01.12.09

At their Wolfratshausen site Haupt Pharma has put a new combined heat and power unit (CHPU) into operation, which is a system that generates both electricity (power) and heat. This is referred to as combined production, as the generation of power is inevitably associated with waste heat.
The proximity of the system to the end consumer makes the use of this heat particularly interesting, as it can be used directly and does not have to be led away into the environment as an undesirable side-effect.
In the first month after being put into operation the system ran for over 550 operating hours without any significant disruption.

It is only through the combined heat and power of a combined heat and power plant that the energy potential of the natural gas can be ideally used for the generation of heat and electricity. The efficiency balance of the natural gas is therefore more than 20% higher in the case of a combined heat and power unit.
As a result of this forward-looking investment the purchase of electricity for the site from the supply company is massively reduced and replaced by energy which is generated autonomously and in an environmentally-friendly manner. The CO2 emissions saved are approximately 250,000 kg per year. This corresponds approximately to a drop in the emission rate of 14%.

For the environment this type of efficiency improvement means energy savings associated with a simultaneous reduction in the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide.
The integration of additional heat consumers will be able to increase the level of efficiency even further in the future.

A further advantage for the Wolfratshausen site is the certainty of being able to act independently of an energy supplier and resort to a reliable grid replacement in sensitive areas such as sterile production, cold storage or media supplies.