Energizing the local society: How the city of Sauda stays warm thanks to Eramet Norway

Energizing the local society: How the city of Sauda stays warm thanks to Eramet Norway

In Sauda, Eramet Norway's plant acts as a giant boiler to help keep the city warm. Read on to find out how it works.

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Newsof March's 15 2022

The Eramet Norway Sauda plant produces ferromanganese alloys - but did you know that it also heats the city of Sauda due to the large amounts of thermal energy it generates as a by-product of their processes?

It all started in 2000, when Eramet Norway Sauda (ENS) and the local hydro power producer imagined a way to recycle the plant's surplus heat. The idea was to transport hot water from the plant's furnaces through a network of pipelines running in a closed loop beneath the city center, in order to smelt the snow and ice on the roads during winter.

3.5 kilometers of pipelines now run beneath the city, covering 25,000 m² of undersoil and 34,000 m² of buildings.

With the growing success of this project, a separate company was created in order to manage this heat distribution system: Sauda Energi, partly-owned by the municipality of Sauda, with ENS as its main energy provider. New extensions have been created since, and today Sauda Energi also provides heat for local public buildings such as the football stadium and the outdoors swimming pool, which can receive hundreds of people every day.

_{At the bottom of the picture is the Eramet Norway Sauda plant. The red dotted line which starts from there and runs through the city represents the heating system pipelines. The areas highlighted in orange are the areas that benefit from the plant's heat.}

_{Left: the installation of the pipelines. Center and right: the football stadium of Sauda staying clear of snow during the winter thanks to the heating system.}

"As an industrial producer in the age of the 'green shift', it is expected that we make the best use of our energy and deal with surplus energy in a responsible way," indicates Kåre Bjarte Bjelland, Director of Strategy and Communications at Eramet Norway and a board member of Sauda Energi. "This project ticks several boxes: it's climate-friendly and allows ENS to improve its energy efficiency and is good for the circular economy as we are reusing a resource that would otherwise be lost."

"The city of Sauda and its inhabitants directly benefit from this in many ways," adds Ørjan Vikedal, Head of Sauda Energi. "As an alternative energy source, this heating system also makes the city more resilient in the face of volatile electricity prices.Additionally, it contributes to the economic well-being of Sauda, which relies greatly on mountain-related tourism. The fact that the city's road network and infrastructures are snow-free even in winter is a great argument to attract visitors to the city center.And with the future extension of the heating system, Sauda Energi will be buying services from local contractors, which also contributes to creating employment locally."

The collaboration between Eramet Norway Sauda and Sauda Energi is thriving: ENS is currently looking to increase the volumes of heat delivered in order to allow for the extension of the heating system to apartment buildings, the high school and a health center. As for Sauda Energi, it is currently working on identifying how this resource could also be used in an industrial symbiosis by industries that require heat as an input factor, for example sustainable food production.