Poland and Germany break ground on pioneering cross-border district heating project

Poland and Germany have broken ground on a pioneering cross-border district heating project in the twin cities of Görlitz and Zgorzelec. Six years in the planning, the United Heat project aims to secure a sustainable heat supply for residents on both sides of the border. The twin cities have a combined population of around 86,000 on both sides of the Neisse River.

The joint project, carried out by Stadtwerke Görlitz, a subsidiary of French utility group Veolia, and SEC Zgorzelec, a subsidiary of Germany’s E.ON, is expected to completely decarbonise and connect the currently separate heating networks on both sides of the border by 2030, E.ON stated. Heat generation for both cities will then be entirely sourced from renewable energy. 

Technologies to be deployed include solar thermal energy with seasonal storage, heat recovery from lake water and wastewater, biomass boilers, and power-to-heat installations. The groundbreaking ceremony marks the start of construction on the first of a total of twelve planned kilometres of pipelines. The project is expected to cut CO₂ emissions by nearly 50,000 tonnes, equivalent to the annual emissions of approximately 28,000 passenger vehicles.

United Heat exemplifies how Europe’s energy markets are being increasingly integrated. Initiated in 2020, it was made a cross-border renewable energy project under the Connecting Europe Facility in 2022 to receive funding as one of three pioneering projects in Europe. The German government is providing approximately 80 million euros through federal funding for efficient heating networks, with the aim of ensuring the economic viability of investments in climate-neutral district heating and minimising the impact on consumer prices. The project has also received support from the German Energy Agency (dena) through the German-Polish Energy Platform, funded by the Federal Foreign Office. 

"United Heat is a striking example of how local authorities can successfully collaborate on heat supply across national borders," said German economy minister Katherina Reiche. "By linking the German and Polish district heating networks, the heating sector will be decarbonised cost-effectively and our energy security strengthened – creating a modern infrastructure that benefits businesses and consumers in Görlitz and Zgorzelec."

District heating is seen as an effective solution for dense cities, as heat can be sourced from diverse sources, such as power plants, industrial processes, waste incineration, biomass or from geothermal energy. Cities and municipalities across Germany are obliged to present plans for decarbonising their heating networks until mid-2028.