Karlsruhe, 12 November 2024 – Vulcan Energy receives a government funding commitment of up to 100 million euros for the HEAT4LANDAU project, which aims to decarbonize the district heating networks in Landau, Rhineland-Palatinate. The project includes the construction of the infrastructure to generate and provide up to 255 MW of geothermal energy. The funding was approved by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection (BMWK) and the European Recovery and Resilience Facility (ARF). These are provided via the German Recovery and Resilience Plan (DARP) as part of the guidelines for federal funding for efficient heating networks (BEW). The BEW funding will be paid out in proportion to the total eligible expenditure: around 22 million euros in 2026 and a further 78 million euros in 2027.

“This government funding is important news for us, the city of Landau and the people in the region, because the HEAT4LANDAU project will support Landau on its way to sustainable, renewable district heating and create an important locational advantage. The German government and the European Union are thus sending a strong signal for our project and our goal of soon supplying Landau with geothermal energy,” says Thorsten Weimann, Managing Director of Vulcan Energy. “We are planning to provide renewable heat from deep geothermal energy in the 2024-2025 heating period and to expand this project in 2026,” adds Weimann.

As part of the HEAT4LANDAU project, Vulcan is aiming to provide the town of Landau with renewable energy from geothermal energy. To this end, the two company-owned geothermal plants in Landau and Insheim are being expanded to include five new drilling sites with a total of 24 wells. These will supply renewable heat for EnergieSüdwest AG’s district heating network. The HEAT4LANDAU project is therefore an integral part of the company’s first “Lionheart” project phase.

“Securing this government funding represents an important milestone for Vulcan because it allows us to put our commitment to decarbonizing the German energy landscape into action. By providing sustainable, renewable geothermal energy to Landau and surrounding communities, we are making a significant contribution to a climate-neutral district heating network. This project is a prime example of how geothermal energy can drive Europe’s green transformation,” says Cris Moreno, Managing Director and CEO of parent company Vulcan Energy.