Today, Monday, Energie und Wasser Potsdam GmbH (EWP) and the GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences, together with other partner institutions, celebrated the official start of drilling for a second geothermal plant in Potsdam. At the site of the Combined Heat and Power Plant “Süd” in southeastern Potsdam, several deep boreholes are scheduled to be drilled by 2027 to tap into underground heat for district heating. The GFZ is supporting the project with scientific advice and through laboratory and modelling studies.

Dr. habil. Sven Fuchs, head of the Hydrothermal Energy working group within the GFZ’s Geoenergy Section, explains the role of science: “The precise characterisation of the rock layers and an understanding of the processes occurring in the underground are crucial for the optimal use of the reservoirs. Only when we know how the layers and properties are distributed underground and how they behave during extraction can energy suppliers optimally plan heat extraction and their facilities. Monitoring the drilling process and supporting the subsurface characterisation provides vital assistance.”

“We see enormous potential for harnessing geothermal energy beneath Potsdam,” says Carsten Schulte, technical director of EWP. “We’ve already demonstrated this impressively with our first major geothermal project on Heinrich-Mann-Allee.” In the future, more than 4 megawatts of thermal power will be fed into Potsdam’s district heating network from that site, which is enough to supply more than 6,000 households. Carsten Schulte: “In collaboration with the GFZ, we will apply our successful concept to other locations.”

Exactly how deep the borehole will ultimately reach depends on the subsurface conditions. Heat alone is not enough; there must also be sufficiently permeable rock with enough thermal water to transport heat upward and return cooled water downward via a system of two or more boreholes.

“The collaboration with EWP combines research and practice in an exemplary way,” says Prof. Dr. Susanne Buiter, Scientific Director of the GFZ. “We are very much looking forward to continuing our collaboration on geothermal research, which is of utmost importance to us.” Prof. Dr. Ingo Sass, project leader on behalf of the GFZ and head of the Geoenergy Section, adds: “The subsurface of Berlin-Brandenburg offers at least half a dozen hydrothermal layers. In Potsdam, we have the opportunity to tap into and utilize several of these horizons simultaneously for the first time. This would be a milestone for geothermal heat supply with a signal effect far beyond the region.”

EWP and the GFZ have been working together since 2020 to explore the Potsdam urban area. A recently signed agreement provides for the continuation of this successful collaboration as part of the four-year cooperation program “Heat from Geothermal Energy.”

Further information:

Press release on the start of cooperation between EWP and GFZ:
https://www.gfz.de/en/press/news/details/enge-zusammenarbeit-fuer-die-waermeversorgung-mit-geothermie-gestartet 

Project page:
https://www.gfz.de/en/section/geoenergy/projects/geothermal-potsdam-sustainable-geothermal-site-development-in-potsdam