To supply heat, a roughly six-kilometre-long transmission line between the district heating areas was constructed, together with a new energy centre for the distribution and storage of heat in Zurich West.
The Zurich West heating supply project with the construction of the connecting transmission line was approved in the 2018 referendum. The transmission line connected the previously separate district heating networks in Zurich North and Zurich West. This transmission line runs underground through the urban areas of Wipkingen, Oberstrass, Unterstrass and Guggach, where the heating water is fed to the surface at three points. This also made it possible to connect these areas with district heating.
From autumn 2022, the hot water for the Zurich West district heating area and the above-mentioned urban areas was primarily produced at the Hagenholz waste incineration plant in Zurich North and supplied via the approximately six-kilometre connecting transmission line.
In the November 2021 referendum, the population approved the further expansion of the district heating network. District heating from the waste incineration and wood heating network is set to cover a quarter of the city’s heating requirements in the future, making a significant contribution to reaching the city of Zurich’s net-zero targets.
The former waste incineration plant on Josefstrasse was transformed into the current energy centre in a series of complex stages over the course of five years. The new energy centre fulfils several functions. First and foremost, the heating water is received from the connecting transmission line and distributed to the districts of Industrie and Aussersihl. If there is a high demand for heating in winter, the required heat is produced at this location in peak load boilers. If the heating demand is low, the excess heat from the connecting transmission line is stored in storage media and can be fed back into the grid if necessary. With the storage media, the use of peak load boilers can be reduced.
