News from Enstadt: Pfaff - Kaiserslautern's valve for climate protection

News from Enstadt: Pfaff - Kaiserslautern's valve for climate protection

Kaiserslautern. In the former Pfaff sewing machine factory in Kaiserslautern, a future-oriented project for promoting climate protection innovations has been realized since 2017. The “Enstadt: Pfaff” project shows how important it is to integrate innovative technologies into the planning of city quarters at an early stage. Recently, the associated website has been completely revised and now offers comprehensive information as well as clear graphics that represent the goals and progress of the project.

The program receives financial support from the Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Protection (BMWK) and the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). It belongs to six nationwide selected lighthouse projects that should show how the energy transition can be effectively implemented in urban areas. By providing a total funding of 23 million euros, the project is to be continued by December 2024, with the aim of building an energy center that supplies the neighborhood with local heating.

important developments in the course of the project

The project management took over the city of Kaiserslautern, while the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems in Freiburg has scientific supervision. More and more attention is aimed at the upcoming application permit for follow -up funding, which should enable the innovative technologies to be tested more precisely over the next three years. The focus should be on technical issues on the subject of heat supply and the loading of electric vehicles.

In autumn 2023, an application was submitted to the project holder Jülich, which is to be submitted to the BMWK on May 15, 2024 after the city council has decided. For the next 36 months, funds of a total of 666,330 euros are planned, with the city must bear a share of 133,270 euros, while the funding rate is 80 percent. This budget includes rental costs for the real laboratory center and personnel costs for project management.

In addition, seven partners, including the Stadtwerke Kaiserslautern (SWK), have filed an application for around 2.7 million euros. A positive feedback on the application is expected in autumn. A change in the Federal Budget Code could lead to the BMWK available for a complete financing of 100 percent, which would make it significantly easier to implement the plans.

The project "Enstadt: Pfaff" is an example of progress in German city winding with regard to sustainable energy use. The establishment of such projects can achieve the climate targets that are plugged in faster and innovative paths in the energy industry can be opened up. The increasing technologization and the ambience of cooperation between different actors make it clear how important it is to proactively counter the challenges of climate change.